Nathan Clifford 
Democrat 




Nathan Clifford 



Nathan Clifford 

Democrat 

(1803-1881) 



By 

Philip Greely GliflFord 



^ 



G. P. Putnam's Sons 

New York and London 

trbe fjnicfterbocfter press 

1922 



.9 



Copyright, 1923 

by 
Philip G. Clifford 



Made in the United States of America 







To 

MY WIFE 



INTRODUCTION 

In presenting to the public the story of the life of Na- 
than Clifford, the author is embarking on a sea, which is 
to him, strange and uncharted. There have been many- 
hidden rocks, great stretches of unknown shoals, and 
numberless cross as well as counter currents. He is well 
aware that not all these dangers have been successfully 
avoided. 

However the book be considered, the effort has been 
made, conscientiously, faulty though it may be, to make 
a partial payment for the privilege of bearing a sur- 
name, honored among men, years before the present writer 
was born. Therefore it is to be hoped that the seriousness 
of purpose may be considered in mitigation of the judg- 
ment of the work. 

There has also been felt a desire to present properly to 
readers the story of one who belonged to what is now 
almost universally admitted to have been the wrong side 
of a great controversy. We are too apt to forget, in the 
light of victory, to investigate into the shadows of defeat. 
The glory of success of ttimes magnifies all those within its 
rays, at the same time minimizing everything outside and 
beyond. The winning party is incorrectly considered all 
good, while its opponents are erroneously held to be the 
absolute opposite. Therefore it is not unwise to look 
occasionally into the life of one who was not within the 
circle of the blessed. 

To the men of the North who helped unflinchingly to 
bear the banner of the Democratic Party during the long 



viii Introduction 

contest over slavery, have been applied epithets signifying 
not only error, but also guilt. All through this struggle 
Nathan Clifford was a Northern Democrat. Nay more, 
he was proud of the title. In all the subsequent years of 
his long life he never was ashamed of it. He reveled in 
it, and sincerely believed that he had followed the only 
right and honorable course. 

If the following pages give the reader a picture of a man 
whose characteristics were virility and fearlessness, 
coupled with simplicity, a high sense of patriotism and 
great integrity mingled with intransigency, actuated by 
the sincere conviction that the continuation of the Fed- 
eral Union demanded the adhesion to ideas which subse- 
quent events have shown to be wrong in part, I shall be 
entirely satisfied. If the book leads a doubter to the belief 
that Judge Clifford, in his political beliefs, love of country 
and honesty of intention, was one of a large class, I shah 
feel that I have contributed to a better appreciation of the 
history of my country. 

I wish to express my thanks to Major William H. Clif- 
ford, Honorable Clarence Hale, Mr. Philip G. Brown, 
Honorable William J. Curtis, Mr. Thomas L. Talbot and 
Mr. Walter G. Davis for their friendly criticism from 
which I have derived much profit. To my brother, the 
late Honorable Nathan Clifford, whose reading and 
research in preparation for writing the biography of his 
grandfather were cut short by sudden death, I owe the 
determination to carry on what he had begun. 

P. G. C. 

Portland, Maine, 
November 21, 1921. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER 

I. — Early Life .... 

II. — Representative to Legislature 

HI. — Representative to Legislature and At 
TORNEY General of Maine 

IV. — Representative to Congress 

V. — Representative to Congress (Continued) 

VI. — Representative to Congress (Continued) 

VII. — Attorney General 

VIII. — Minister to Mexico . 

IX.— 1849-1858 .... 

X. — Justice of the Supreme Court 

XI. — Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 



3 
15 

42 

77 
108 
123 
138 
165 
241 
270 
295 



X CONTENTS 

PAGE 

XII.— The Electoral Commission . . .308 
XIIL— The Man 325 



Nathan Clifford, Democrat 



NatHan Clifford, Democrat 

CHAPTER I 
Early Life 

The rigors of the New England climate and the rugged 
character of her citizens have very often been said to 
stand in the relation of cause and effect. Whether this 
may be scientifically true, or is a happy conceit of some 
poetically gifted admirer of northern temperament, it, 
at all events, furnishes a most reasonable explanation of 
the prevalence among the early settlers on our shores of 
those sterling qualities which some persons have consid- 
ered predominating in the American of the first century 
of the Republic. The trials, hardships and privations 
with which the comers to the new land had to contend, 
must certainly have had the effect of keeping off or driving 
back again any but the stoutest hearts and the most 
enterprising spirits, till at length there could have been 
left only the physically strong, the resourceful and the 
brave. 

In Nathan Clifford, who first saw the light of day Aug- 
ust 1 8, 1803, in the little town of Rumney, Grafton 
County, New Hampshire, can be noticed the results of 
the difficult conditions under which his ancestors had 
lived. He was of English stock, the tamily having emi- 
grated to this country in the year 1644. The great-grand- 
father of Nathan Clifford, Isaac Clifford, came into the 



4 Life of Nathan Clifford 

world in Hampton, New Hampshire, May 24, 1696. He 
moved to Rumney, where the latter part of his days was 
spent. He was collector and treasurer of the town. His 
son, Nathaniel, began life in Rumney in 1750. Nathaniel 
was like Isaac in character ; public spirited, much respected, 
and filled the same local offices that his parent had held. 
He passed away January 23, 1824. The father of Nathan 
Clifford was Deacon Nathaniel Clifford, who was born 
in Rumney, September 23, 1778. The Deacon was of a 
very serious turn of mind, a trifle stern and puritanical, 
but highly regarded for intelligence and uprightness. He 
died in 1820. His wife was Lydia Simpson, the daughter 
of David Simpson of Greenland. She was a woman of 
great personal beauty and unusual energy, vigor and 
perspicacity. Her mental peculiarities were transmitted 
to her child, Nathan. She lived to see him occupy the 
position of Justice of the Supreme Court of the United 
States and ended her earthly career June 30, 1869, at the 
ripe old age of ninety-six. 

Nature lavished upon Judge Clifford one great gift, — 
almost perfect health, which stood the strain of long days 
of hard work. Labors which would have broken down the 
constitution of a weaker man left him unscathed to do his 
tasks until, at last, the human machine, literally worn 
out, ceased to function. 

Judge Clifford was the only son in a household of seven 
children. The finances of the family were very limited 
but sufficient to afford a comfortable home, free from any 
great privations. The Deacon lived in a small one and a 
half story house some distance from the more thickly settled 
portion of the village of Rumney This structure was 
standing up to a few years ago. It was in this modest 
abode that the Judge was born. 

The means of education in the town of Rumney were 
very limited; the course of instruction was narrow and the 



Early Life 5 

terms of school continued for only a short time during the 
winter months when the children could be spared from 
work on the farm. The early formative influences to 
which the boy was subjected were of the purest and 
healthiest sort. His home, though quite humble, was one 
in which the principles of honor and morality were both 
exemplified and taught. Parental affection had, however, 
cherished no further expectations for the future of the 
child than that he should succeed to his father's place and 
pursue the kind of life the latter had led. The Deacon 
entertained no hope for his son beyond what might 
be expected from a somewhat stingy Nature in return 
for a diligent cultivation of a very modest plot of 
ground. 

In short there was nothing to distinguish young Nathan, 
to the casual observer, from any other New England 
farmer's boy, and the thought had apparently never 
occurred to the sire that his offspring would do more than 
carry on the life and traditions of his ancestors. Nathan 
was not brilliant. There was never noticeable in his char- 
acter that glittering, flashing genius which shoots so high — 
and sometimes falls so low. The child had something 
better than genius. He possessed the ability for hard 
work and the slow, plodding retentive mind, with sufficient 
self -appreciation to lift the spirit out of the mire where 
wallows the drudge. It is to this characteristic of dogged 
determination to stick to a thing till mastered, and to the 
ability to use what he had acquired that must be at- 
tributed the success which came to him in after life. 

The first school he attended was that of his native 
village. Poor as this was, with persistence and faithful 
work, he succeeded in securing for himself a fair intellec- 
tual groundwork. At the age ot fourteen he told his 
elders of his desire to obtain an education more liberal 
than was within the reach of their means to afford him. 



6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

At first the family did not view with any degree of favor 
this departure from traditions. He finally, however, 
overcame their resistance and obtained their reluctant 
consent to his enrollment as a pupil in Haverhill Academy. 
At the time of Clifford's studies there, this institution had 
recently been established in a stone building, the original 
wooden structure having been burned in 1814. The 
academy was one of the oldest in the State of New Hamp- 
shire, having been incorporated in 1794 and having helped 
to educate many famous men. ' Here Clifford remained as 
a student for three years, until 1820. 

Following the custom set by other New England boys 
of small means and great ambitions, he obtained the 
direction of a small district school in one of the neighbor- 
ing towns. His earnings from this source were very 
small, so that in order to supplement the scanty pay of the 
country teacher, he used his classroom in the evenings as 
a place for giving singing lessons. It is said that he was 
possessed of a fine voice, a good musical taste, and a con- 
siderable knowledge of harmony, having acquired these 
latter accomplishments from his father and sisters during 
evenings at home. In spite of such exceptional and for- 
tunate opportunities, one must feel considerable doubt as 
to the value of the future justice's instruction in the vocal 
art . Such teaching as he imparted was , however, doubtless 
without great expense to the recipient. 

The three years of school life at Haverhill were thus sub- 
ject to many interruptions, but unflagging industry made 
up for absences and brought rapid progress with great 
mental discipline. Subsequently, one year spent at the 
literary institution at New Hampton, N. H., completed 
the young man's academic training. He had hoped to 
enter Dartmouth with the youths of his class and age, but 
to his disappointment he found himself unable to procure 

' History of New Hampshire, Everett Stackpole, vol. ii,, page 337. 



Early Life 7 

the money for such a course. It was, therefore, with 
great reluctance that the possibiHty of a college career was 
surrendered. He did, however, find the means and time, 
in the midst of all his other occupations, to pursue the 
Hne of classical and other studies prescribed at that time 
by a New England college. He tried, so far as possible, 
to keep abreast of the reading and studying of the grade 
at Dartmouth in which he would have entered had his 
resources been sufficient. 

While he was at New Hampton Institute he announced 
to his family his determination to read law. The choice 
of this profession was not an accident or a sudden decision, 
but the result of a fixed and settled preference. The years 
of preparation had been times of close and intense applica- 
tion. They had borne their fruit in a mind matured and 
in the production of practical views of life. The instruc- 
tion at the academies had been supplemented by a consider- 
able stock of general reading, so that, on the whole, young 
Clifford had fairly well fitted himself for the commence- 
ment of his life work. His earnest study had attracted 
the attention and won the interested affection of his 
teacher, securing for him much assistance and encourage- 
ment. 

At the age of eighteen he entered the office of Josiah 
Quincy, a prominent lawyer of Grafton County. Mr. 
Quincy was probably, at that time, the leading attorney 
of the district. He was born in 1793 in Lenox, Mass., 
and settled in Rumney in 1816. Beginning life in very 
restricted circumstances, he had soon acquired financial 
success and later became the adviser for many large inter- 
ests. He was several times a member of the State Legis- 
lature in both branches, and was President of the Senate. 
He died in Rumney in 1875. He was known by some 
as a hard, grasping, money-getting man, but one biog- 
rapher, at least, regards his reputation as but the re- 



8 Life of Nathan Clifford 

suit of the jealousy of those who were less successful than 
himself. ^ 

By thoroughness and application the young student 
soon won the respect of Mr. Quincy, who treated Mr. 
Clifford with the utmost kindness, making him a confi- 
dant in practice and finally intrusting him with various 
matters of large importance. It was without doubt owing 
to the interest and care shown by Mr. Quincy toward his 
pupil that the latter early acquired a remarkable f amiHar- 
ity with the customs and details of business in a law office. 
Also it is probable that the training under this old-fash- 
ioned counsellor, coupled with the slender means of Deacon 
Nathaniel, led Mr. Clifford to an early and full apprecia- 
tion of the value of money. 

His times of study were still broken into by the necessity 
for teaching in order to supplement his small income. 
With his accustomed assiduity, however, he applied him- 
self to his task. At this period entrance into the bar of 
New Hampshire could be obtained, by one not a college 
graduate, only after a laborious preparation of five years. 
Such a course was accomplished by 1827, and in May of 
that year Mr. Clifford was admitted to practice in New 
Hampshire. It is well to consider what satisfaction the 
final accomplishment of a long cherished purpose must 
have brought to the young man. He was at last in the 
possession of a certificate enabling him to compete in the 
world with men of affairs. He had but to pick up one of 
the opportunities which lay about him. 

The first step in his career was to decide on a place in 
which to settle. The choice of a location was then gov- 
erned by very different considerations than at present. 
The outlying districts were of much greater relative promi- 
nence than they are today. The centers of population 

* The Bench and Bar of New Hampshire, by C. H. Bell, Houghton, MiflOiin 
&Co., 1894. 



Early Life 9 

had not then begun to absorb the brains and trade of the 
State. Communication was still wholly by stage and 
carriage. The country was not able to obtain the satisfac- 
tion of its wants from the cities. Therefore there were 
many towns of considerable importance, where a fair sized 
trade flourished, which since, for obvious reasons, have 
fallen back into a dry rot. 

Such a settlement was Newfield, Maine, near the New 
Hampshire boundary. It lies on the north bank of the 
Little Ossipee River, about thirty miles northwest of 
Portland, adjoins Limerick on the east and Parsonsfield 
on the north, and is divided by the river from Shapleigh 
on the south. To one standing on the opposite bank of 
the stream and looking northward, a picturesque and 
unusual aspect is presented. The ground rises in three 
successive terraces from the water's edge, till the highest 
is 'crowned with hills and peaks, some bald, some orna- 
mented with plume-like elms, whose graceful forms stand 
outlined against the sky. Upon the flats or tops of each 
elevation are collected the separate smaller hamlets con- 
stituting the parent village. A southern exposure hastens 
the spring and renders the soil fruitful and productive. 

In 1827, it was a thriving little place, containing several 
lumber mills and tanneries. By the census of 1820, it 
had 1 147 inhabitants, and by that of 1830, 1289.' Busi- 
ness of various kinds was active, and land titles were in 
great confusion. Apparently there was no lawyer in the 
town. 

Acting on the advice of Hon. Ether Shepley, then a 
practicing attorney of Saco, shortly to be appointed on the 
Supreme Bench of the State and later to receive the well- 
deserved honor of Chief Justice of the same court, Mr. 
Clifford selected Newfield as his place of residence. Be- 
fore leaving the home of his father, he had provided him- 

» Portland, Maine, Argus, January 17, 1831. 



10 Life of Nathan Clifford 

self with what credentials he thought necessary. Among 
the earUest of his papers are found the following: 

This certifies that the bearer, Mr. Nathan Clifford has been 
a student at law in my office for the term of five years — During 
all of which time he has been diligent and attentive to his 
studies and sustained a good moral character — 

Rumney, May 20, 1827. 

JOSIAH QUINCY. 

The undersigned being well acquainted with Mr. Nathan 
Clifford, a young gentleman who has recently finished his 
legal studies and wishes to locate himself in order to practice 
his profession beg leave to recommend him to the notice and 
esteem of those who may need his services or be able to assist 
him. 

Mr. Clifford has ever sustained a good moral character and 
from many displays of his professional skill and abilities which 
have fallen under our observation we doubt not that he is well 
read in his profession and has talent sufficient to make himself 
eminently useful and highly respectable. 

Wentworth June 2nd 1827. 

Thomas Whipple, Jr. 
Caleb Keith 
Samuel Burns 

It may be of interest to the reader to know that Went- 
worth, N. H., is a town bounded by Rumney on the east 
and Orford on the west. It was incorporated by Gov. 
Benning Wentworth in 1766, and contains about six 
square miles. Rumney was chartered in 1767, so that the 
two villages were of practically the same age. ' Diligent 
search has not disclosed the identity of the three men 
whose names appear at the bottom of the second cer- 
tificate, though a Thomas Jefferson Whipple read law in 
Josiah Quincy's office, a few years later than did Mr. 

^History of New Hampshire, pp. 281, 286, by John N. McClintock, 
Boston, B. B. Russell, 1888. 



Early Life 1 1 

Clifford. It is possible he was the son of the signer of the 
reference. ' 

In 1827 the means of transportation were very meagre, 
and in the case of Nathan Clifford were confined to the 
two strong legs with which nature had amply endowed him. 
Family tradition tells of his long walk from Rumney to 
Newfield with all his worldly goods done up in a pocket 
handkerchief and suspended from a stick over his shoulder. 
Whether or not this be true, it is pleasant to speculate on 
the state of mind of the youth, realizing, probably, that he 
had good brains in his head, and knowing full well he had 
no money in his pocket, as he tramped his solitary way 
over the New Hampshire country roads, in the year of 
grace 1827. Had he had a true vision of the future, would 
he have been any happier? "The thoughts of youth are 
long, long thoughts," and it takes no great imagination 
to believe that his were very long and very practical, as 
hour after hour he trudged on, now resting for a bite to 
eat, now talking with a farmer as he passed through the 
more settled districts, sleeping, doubtless, at times by the 
roadside, and always possessed with the one determined 
resolve to succeed. 

Upon his arrival in Newfield he went at once to the 
house of Captain James Ayer. The Ayers of Newfield 
were very numerous. Family tradition again has it that he 
lived in the home of Captain James Ayer, while it is known 
that he had an office in the house of Dr. James Ayer, the 
two men being distant cousins.^ What gained the young 
man such ready access to the leading family of the town 
must be left largely to conjecture. It should, however, be 
noted that Captain Ayer was possessed of a very beautiful 
daughter, aged sixteen, at the date of Mr. Clifford's ar- 
rival in the town, and that in less than a year from the 

' Bench and Bar of New Hampshire, by C. H. Bell. 

» Dr. James Ayer, In Mentor iam, privately printed, 1892. 



12 Life of Nathan Clifford 

advent of the stranger into the Ayer homestead, the 
daughter, Hannah, and Mr. Clifford were united in mar- 
riage, March 20, 1 828. She was but seventeen years of age. 

This wedding, the fruition of a romance so suddenly 
commenced, was the beginning of a joint life of helpfulness 
and understanding which continued for fifty-three years. 
Mrs. Clifford was constantly with her husband except 
when the cares of a young family prevented her from 
accompanying him. Theirs was an example of the kind of 
matrimonial alliance which lays the foundation of a so- 
ciety based upon the sacredness of home, the proper rear- 
ing of children, and the thoughtful and sincere recognition 
of the responsibilities which such a union entails. 

By an act of the legislature of the State of Maine passed 
February 25, 1825, any person who had been licensed to 
practice law in the highest court of any other State, where 
the qualifications required for admission were equal to her 
own, was entitled to apply for membership in the bar of the 
former. As New Hampshire came under such a descrip- 
tion, Mr. Clifford was enabled at once to claim the right 
of entrance into the legal fraternity of his adopted home. 
In consequence of early acquired habits of reflective study 
and a strong memory of remarkable accuracy, the young 
lawyer had brought with him into his newly chosen field 
of endeavor a substantial fund of knowledge, together with 
a capacity trained to apply this learning to the questions 
arising out of the affairs of men. Therefore he made his 
way to the confidence and esteem of the people among 
whom he lived, soon finding himself engaged in a fair sized 
and increasing business. 

His marriage, doubtless, helped him toward the acquisi- 
tion of a respectable practice. His father-in-law. Captain 
Ayer, was one of the leading citizens of the town. Elisha 
Ayer, father of Captain Ayer, had purchased from various 
owners a large tract on both sides of the Little Ossipee, 



Early Life 13 

and had thus become the chief landed proprietor in that 
section. The son was, therefore, a person of great influ- 
ence and high position. The care and management of a 
property of such dimensions must have rendered the ad- 
vice and efforts of an attorney most necessary. It is easy 
to imagine that many important family matters were 
turned over to the son-in-law. Such a nucleus brought 
him other clients, and the presence among the Clifford 
papers of a number of old deeds is evidence of a large real 
estate practice. 

Mr. Clifford was early led toward a political life. His 
upbringing had turned him toward the party of the people 
rather than that of the Federalists or their successors. 
Therefore it is not surprising that in the campaign of 1828 
in which Andrew Jackson ran for the presidency, Mr. 
Clifford should have been an ardent Jackson supporter. 
He must have been a most convincing advocate, because, 
although at the time of his coming to Newfield in 1827 
there were scarcely a score of Democrats in the town, he 
was, in 1830, elected to the legislature on the Democratic 
ticket by a large majority. Such success should be con- 
sidered along with the fact that in the Maine election of 
1828, Jackson received only 13,927 electoral votes against 
20,773, for Adams. ' 

It is said that Captain Ayer, who apparently was a con- 
servative, tendered his son-in-law a position on the legis- 
lative ticket of the older party, which offer was refused. 
This, however, cannot be verified. It is, nevertheless, a 
story indicative of the young man's character. He had 
now reached a point in life where the first difficulties had 
been overcome. He had educated himself in his chosen 
profession. He had felt himself in possession of sufficient 
means to warrant the assumption of the responsibilities of 

» See Files of Portland, Me., Eastern Argus of this period, especially 
Jan. 9, 1829. 



14 Life of Nathan Clifford 

a family. He had become respected and esteemed in the 
community of his adoption, and now he dared to tell his 
fellow townsmen that the majority of them were following 
the wrong political standard bearer ; that the future of the 
country demanded the government of the party of youth 
and fresh ideals, that of the people rather than of the 
wealthier, conservative class; dared, to the extent of re- 
jecting the political preferment proffered by one of the 
leaders of the already dying, though still hearty, aris- 
tocracy, and one who was united to him in the relationship 
of father-in-law. 

The selection of his political affiliation was like all other 
important steps taken by Mr. Clifford during his lifetime. 
It was irrevocable. A choice once made, after long de- 
liberation, was final. Through all the vicissitudes of the 
career of the Democratic Party for the next sixty years, 
Mr. Clifford was its loyal and unwavering supporter. He 
believed that the good of the nation was best served by 
his allegiance to the faith of his youth. To this he was 
always true. Whatever might be said of his judgment, no 
question can ever be raised as to the absolute sincerity of 
his belief or the honesty of his convictions. 



CHAPTER II 
Representative to Legislature 

In order to understand the political situation at the date 
of Mr. Clifford's election to the state legislature, one should 
refresh one's recollection with a brief survey of the 
trend for the forty years preceding. It will then be 
understood that there were at this period in the embryonic 
stage those forces which were to govern the history of 
political parties in America for the next fifty years. While 
it is difficult to assign any particular time to the beginning 
of tendencies, still it is fairly accurate to say that during 
the twenties there began to show above the horizon the 
threatening clouds of secession and nullification, which 
though dispelled for brief intervals, continued to darken 
the sky till it was cleared finally by the Civil War. 

It will be remembered that the Federalist Party had 
gone down to signal defeat and virtual death after the one 
term of John Adams in the presidential chair. Various 
causes had contributed to this event, but the chief reason 
was, doubtless, the fact that the adoption of the Con- 
stitution had been the work of a minority of the people. 
The best brains, the wealth and the aristocracy of the 
land, forming a party which believed in strong central 
government (when they were in office) had by sheer 
firmness of purpose and no little manipulation, forced 
their ideas upon a somewhat unwilling country.' This 
group, or the Federalists as they became to be called, im- 

' Life of John Marshall by Albert J. Beveridge, vol. i., pages 356 and 391. 
See also account of Adoption of Oanstitution in vol. i. of same. 

15 



1 6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

mediately assumed the reins of power which the ratifica- 
tion of their designs had placed in their hands. Their aim 
was to preserve the country against the evils of divided 
sovereignty such as had existed since the Declaration of 
Independence. The central authority must be supreme. 
They had very little sympathy with the rank and file 
except in the way of ruling them and doing it well. Thus 
they immediately came into opposition to those who liked 
as little restraint as possible and with the theory that the 
United States was merely a confederation, each member of 
which was sovereign. 

Jefferson, seeing the opportunity for building out of these 
elements of discontent a party of the common people as 
distinguished from the gentility, early began to construct 
the machine which was soon to make him the most power- 
ful man in America. Taking advantage of all the weak- 
nesses of his opponents, using every body of men which for 
any reason was against the "old regime," combining the 
doctrine of states' rights with his natural theoretical love 
of individual freedom, he wielded an influence which 
reached to all parts of the country and extended to the 
most remote settlements.' The Sage of Monticello was 
indeed the idol of the masses. Thus came about the fall 
of the FederaHsts. 

Their principles, however, survived. For the next 
ninety years, the beliefs of men as to the rights and powers 
of the national and state governments in their relation to 
each other were to form the bases for the platforms of 
parties. There was always to be a group favoring a wide 
extension of the authority of the former, and opposed to 
it a faction advocating what came to be called strict con- 
struction of the Constitution. Whatever issue of import- 
ance might arise at any election, it could be traced back 

' Thomas Jefferson by John T. Morse, Jr., pages 115-117, American 
Statesmen Series. 



Representative to Legislature 17 

to this divergence of opinion. Whether it were slavery, 
the tariff, the bank or the distribution of public monies, 
we see the champions aligning themselves according to 
their faith in the central as distinguished from local 
supremacy. 

But in the last analysis the general government must be 
stronger than that of its component parts, if it is to suc- 
ceed. There can be but one head. So one sees in Amer- 
ican history the curious phenomena of parties elected to 
power on a platform of peoples' rights and individual 
freedom (which was but another way of expressing local 
or state liberty), gradually falling away from this theory, 
till a fresh cry of despotism is raised, and a full tide of 
democracy wafts into control a different set of rulers. To 
maintain the proper balance between these two opposing 
beliefs is, and always has been, the task of the American 
statesman. 

Thus it happened that through the administration of 
Madison and Monroe, the trend of policy, silent and often 
unconscious, was toward that of the former aristocratic 
government. Power makes for conservatism, and what- 
ever the avowed purpose of a party, it is sure to come to a 
conviction that its aims, being right, must be carried out. 

When we arrive at the election of John Quincy Adams 
we find ourselves confronted by a true Federalist under a 
different name . ^ The times were ripe for another overturn . 
The country had been growing. The great additions of 
territory had more than doubled the area of the United 
States. Vast tracts of unoccupied land called to the 
adventurous to improve it. Gradually but irresistibly 
the frontier crept farther and farther from the Atlantic. 
Emigration increased, yet the new lands absorbed all the 
influx, while calling for more. The West was becoming a 
factor. Its inhabitants were of the sort who had little in 

' John Quincy Adams, by John T. Morse, Jr., page 193. 



i8 Life of Nathan Clifford 

common with the traditions of the past. The original 
thirteen colonies had thrown off the yoke of the mother 
country, but still there was a great veneration in the 
eastern and older states for the customs of the old world. 
None of this feeHng existed in the more recently acquired 
territories. The surroundings of the energetic pioneer 
settlers breathed of things fresh. Forcefulness, individual 
initiative, aversion to restraint of any kind cried out for 
change. ^ 

The call of the times was answered in the person of 
Jackson. He had run against Adams in 1824, but had 
suffered defeat in the House of Representatives, though 
receiving the greatest number of electoral votes. In 1828 
he was swept into office on a wave of popular feeling. His 
election marks the beginning of a new epoch of American 
history, just as that of Jefferson had signified the end 
of Federalist rule. 

Parts of the eastern seaboard were undergoing a develop- 
ment into a manufacturing district. The embargo and 
kindred legislation and the war of 1812 had closed all our 
ports to foreign trade. Populations which had been largely 
dependent on Europe for their supplies of certain articles 
were faced with the situation of providing for themselves. 
The shipping of New England lay idle at the wharves. 
Not only could the Yankee skipper no longer sail the seas, 
but the money of the ship owners was lying inactive. The 
two elements necessary for the establishment of any busi- 
ness existed side by side ; the need of the goods and the idle 
capital. The enterprising merchant began to embark his 
surplus funds in industrial experiments.^ Gradually the 
cry arose that the United States must be economically self 
sufficient in order to avoid a repetition of the suffering and 
distress of past years. At first there was no fear of over- 

> Wilson, History of the American People, vol. iii., page 246. 
^Ibid., page 196. 



Representative to Legislature 19 

sea competition. There was no importation. When 
European peace returned, however, and our harbors again 
became open to the commerce of the world, the circum- 
stances of youthful American industries were gradually 
changed. The older established factories of other coun- 
tries could and would under-sell them in the home market. 
Thus came the desire for duties. 

Obviously, if one kind of business was to be aided in this 
way the others should be. The requests for protection of 
youthful industry became unlimited. Congress was faced 
with a new problem, of which the only solution seemed to 
be to grant all demands. So in a comparatively short 
space of time the law of 1828 was enacted, known as the 
* * Tariff of Abominations. ' ' Manufacturing, however, was 
confined to the northern communities. Therefore, the 
tariff, being a duty on fabricated articles, was not popular 
at the South. Southern statesmen felt that it did not 
benefit their states, but was, on the contrary, a hardship 
to them, in that it caused them to pay higher prices for 
goods they imported or bought in the North, and which 
they could not produce themselves. As a result, came the 
threats of South Carolina, subsequently to be carried out 
in her nullification ordinances. 

It would seem that Maine's interest was rather against 
any restrictions on foreign commerce. She was not the 
home of manufacturing centers as was Massachusetts and 
some of the other New England States. The tariff would 
do her little good. She had no industries which would be 
protected by a prevention of or a restraint on importation, 
while, on the other hand, her vast expanse of coast line and 
her consequent interest in shipping, would naturally lead 
her toward a policy which would insure the greatest over- 
sea trade. The "Tariff of Abominations" had doubled 
the duty on molasses, thus striking a heavy blow at 
New England prosperity. Maine lumber, Maine ves- 



20 Life of Nathan Clifford 

sels, and all business dependent on them were seriously 
affected. ' 

It is interesting to consider how closely the question of 
the tariff was bound up with slavery. The two must be 
treated as inseparable, if one is to get a correct view of the 
events of this period. The fact that negro servitude ex- 
isted in the South prevented the introduction of manu- 
facturing into that territory for the reason that such in- 
dustries are worked by paid labor which will not come into 
a district where slaves are employed.^ Therefore, the 
population of the Southern States was not increasing, 
while that of their free neighbors was growing rapidly. 

The South was becoming alarmed over the expansion 
of the North as compared with her own apparent inability to 
enlarge her representation in Congress. She looked forward 
to the day when she would be hopelessly outvoted in the 
more popular branch of Congress.^ The only way that 
this result could be counterbalanced was to insure the 
admission into the Union of more slave states in order to 
keep up her membership in the Senate. This became her 
fixed purpose. 

The Missouri Compromise had come as the result of 
such determination.'' It is we'll to remember that the act 
was a Southern measure. The fact that Maine was ad- 
mitted as a free state was but a side issue. The South 
gave up an unreasonable opposition in return for the 
admission of Missouri as a slave holding community and 
the recognition of the possibility of others south of the 
line 36° 30". 

By this time the custom of owning negroes had come 

' Hatch, History of Maine, vol. i., pages 193-194. 
' Wilson, History of American People, vol. iii., page 252. 
3 Rhodes, History of United States, from the Compromise of 1850, vol. i., 
page 30. 

" Ihid, page 37. 



Representative to Legislature 21 

to be considered by its advocates a necessary part of the 
social order. The view, that it would be finally abolished, * 
formerly held by many Southern leaders, seemed to have 
passed away. The institution was often spoken of as one 
which met with divine favor, and allusions to the Bible 
in its support were common.^ On the other hand, aboli- 
tion societies had been formed, but had, as yet, exercised 
no great power. The general attitude was one of a tempo- 
rary tolerance of the practice. The crucial moment had not 
yet arrived. 

The question of the northeastern boundary of the 
United States was one which had been hanging undecided 
ever since the end of the War of Independence. Without 
burdening the reader with an account of the many at- 
tempts to reach an agreement upon this most troublesome 
problem, let it be remembered that at the present stage of 
the controversy, the English claimed a line considerably 
farther south and a little more to the east, than that con- 
ceded by the Americans. 

The eastern limits of the country as defined by the 
treaty of 1783 was "a line to be drawn along the middle 
of the river St. Croix from its mouth in the Bay of Fundy 
to its source, and from its source directly north to the 
aforesaid Highlands, which divide the rivers that fall into 
the Atlantic Ocean from those which fall into the river St. 
Lawrence." The northern side ran westerly along these 
"highlands. "3 England and the United States had at last 
agreed on what was the St. Croix River and had located its 
"source," but their divergent claims started from different 
opinions as to the location of the "highlands" referred to, 
the American contention being that the ' ' line' ' as described 

' Rhodes, vol. i., page 19. 

' American History told by Contemporaries, by Hart, vol. iii., page 597 
et seq. 

J Select Documents of United States History, McDonald, page 18. 



22 Life of Nathan Clifford 

by that instrument started at the rise of the river and 
ran north to the hills on the north slope of which were the 
head waters of the river Metis which enters the St. Law- 
rence. The English insisted that the "highlands" named 
were the ridge at Mars Hill some hundred miles further 
south. ' This dispute had been referred to the King of the 
Netherlands for settlement and was still undecided by 
him. 

On January lo, 1831, immediately after the opening of 
the session of the legislature, the King of the Netherlands 
pubHshed his conclusions as to the rights of the parties. 
The grounds of the decision surprised every one. The 
award was plainly a compromise. No attempt was made 
therein to determine the location of the places mentioned 
in the treaty, and an arbitrary line of convenience was 
drawn which divided the disputed territory in two parts. 
The news did not reach America till some weeks later, 
however, and it was not till March 25, 1831 , that Governor 
Smith, in a message to the legislature, announced his re- 
ception of a copy and translation of the judgment of 
the arbiter. ^ 

The question of the rechartering of the United States 
Bank was coming to the fore. This institution had first 
been created in 1791 for twenty years. Jefferson and his 
party had allowed the charter to lapse in 181 1, but as Mr. 
Wilson forcefully says, "finding the exigencies of finance 
powerful solvents of their scruples," they had renewed it 
in 18 16 for twenty years. The constitutionality of the 
law incorporating the body had been passed on in the 
case of McCulloch vs. Maryland, and a decision had been 
rendered in its favor. The capital stock was $35,000,000 of 
which $11,000,000 was held by the Federal Treasury. 

' McMaster, History of the People of the United States, vol. v., pages 467- 
473. See also Barrage. 
* Barrage, page 168. 



Representative to Legislature 23 

Five of the twenty -five directors were appointed by the 
President of the United States. It was the depositary of 
the pubHc funds and enjoyed their use without interest. 
It had the right to issue notes to the full par value of the 
capital stock, and they were receivable by the United 
States as cash for all debts. The bank had paid $i ,500,000 
for its organization, and had agreed to negotiate govern- 
ment loans without interest. All its notes were redeem- 
able in specie. ^ 

The boundary dispute, phases of the slavery agitation, 
and the United States Bank question, were to be debated 
in the Maine legislature during Mr. Clifford's membership 
in that body. While all these matters were of national 
importance, the first was also of great local interest. The 
two latter could come up only collaterally, in order to give 
different leaders a chance to air their views on federal 
policies, and bring into line some of their wavering asso- 
ciates. Political groups were not yet formed on the firm 
lines which later marked their division, but their members 
voted in changing combinations as the different issues 
arose. Individual opinion had not yet submerged itself 
within the narrow limits of partisan belief, and the cap- 
tains of the various factions were constantly on the alert 
to catch at opportunities to bring any uncertain brothers 
into the protective field of the party's discipline. 

The legislature in 183 1 met in Portland. It was the last 
session to be held there. The body was for the first time 
Democratic in both branches. Robert P. Dunlap was 
elected president of the Senate; John Ruggles,^ Speaker of 
the House and Samuel E. Smith was Governor.^ The 
Portland Argus of that period is strong in its praises of the 
speed with which the organization was accomplished. Mr. 

' Wilson, History of American People, vol. iv., page 43. 
'United States Senator, 1835-41. 
3 Portland Argus, January 7, 1831. 



24 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Clifford was placed on the committee of Bills on Third 
Reading and Literary Institutions. * 

The first important speech recorded as being made by 
him was that in favor of the resolve to make regular the 
acts of the previous legislature. ^ The reason for the meas- 
ure had its origin in the bitter party feeling engendered 
at the session of 1830. Great difficulty had been experi- 
enced in organizing the Senate of that year because of the 
equal division of its members among the two opposing 
factions. The Democrats had characterized the attitude 
of the "Federalists" as one of unconstitutional ob- 
struction. The House had unseated a member in the face 
of loud protests of the former.^ The action of the com- 
mittee which counted the votes for governor was assailed 
by them as unfair and unlawful. If the accusations thus 
made were true there had been an acting legislature and 
executive who had not been the choice of the majority of 
the voters of the state, and had not been properly elected 
to their respective offices. Laws passed by such an as- 
sembly and signed under these conditions could have no 
legal effect. 

The argument in favor of the enactment was that inas- 
much as there was a grave question as to the force of the 
statutes of 1830, they should at once be given the full 
sanction of a body to which no stigma of irregularity 
attached. It was perhaps a necessary measure. It was 
certainly an exceptionally good opportunity to "play 
politics" in a harmless way. 

On March 8th Mr. Clifford spoke in favor of raising the 
bank tax from one-half of one per cent to one per cent.'* 
The opponents of the measure argued that its passage 
would tend to drive capital out of the state. Mr. Clifford 

' Portland Argus, January 11, 1831. 

» Ibid., February 11, 1831. ^ JUd , January 7, 1831. 

4 See Files of Portland Argus, March 8, 1831. 



Representative to Legislature 25 

said that he did not think that such a result would follow 
the enactment of the bill, otherwise he would not vote for 
it. He stated his belief that taxation always bore hardest 
on the poor, inasmuch as everything which they possess 
is in sight, whereas a large part of the property of the 
wealthy is intangible and unknown to the authorities, 
and therefore not reached. Here was an opportunity to 
levy on those best able to pay. In reply to the declaration 
that one-third of the bank stock held in Maine was owned 
by widows and orphans, he contended that any individuals 
owning such shares were usually well-to-do and so should 
be assessed, and drew a distinction between them and the 
similar dependents of needy farmers owning a cow and a 
few pigs, whose belongings were always pounced upon 
without creating any sympathy on the part of those 
against this proposed law. He said that as long as bank 
stock was at par and higher, the argument that these 
assets had shrunken in value had no weight with him, 
particularly as the worth of everything had decreased, 
that of one no more than of another. 

On March 226., Mr. Clifford moved to reconsider the 
resolve in relation to the abolition of negro servitude in the 
District of Columbia. He said he held this to be a very 
singular act to be passed by the legislature of the State 
of Maine. ' Here we see the beginning of Mr. Clifford's 
future attitude on this all absorbing subject. He was not a 
believer in the practice, nor was he an advocate of seces- 
sion. He did, however, feel very strongly that neither the 
North nor the Federal Government had any right to dic- 
tate as to whether blacks could be owned in certain parts 
of the country. In other words, he considered that slavery 
was a local institution, the regulation of which should be 
left to the different states themselves. He also believed 
it would, in time, bring about its own death, and he 

' See Files of Portland, Maine, Argus, March 25, 1831. 



26 Life of Nathan Clifford 

strongly opposed any sectional agitation looking toward 
putting an end to the custom. He maintained that such 
continued stirring up of the question was the cause rather 
than the effect of the treasonable doctrines of the South. 

While it is impossible to go in detail into the different 
matters debated by Mr. Clifford during the session of 1 831, 
it should be noted that as the weeks went by he became 
increasingly active in all discussions of the House, fear- 
lessly expressing his views on such of them as seemed of 
importance to him. He was a representative of a rural 
community. The legislation relating to the country, and 
the effect of laws on such districts, as distinguished 
from the cities, were of particular interest to him. It is 
also probable that the measures concerning the larger 
centers of population did not appeal to him with the same 
force as those regarding conditions with which he was 
more familiar. It is doubtful whether he had the fullest 
sympathy with the necessary adjuncts of urban life, such 
as banks and other large financial institutions. 

The proximity of Portland to Newfield enabled Mr. 
Clifford to go home frequently during the winter. This 
accounts for the lack of letters to his wife, only one being 
found among his papers. It was apparently written 
shortly after a return from a visit to his family. 

Portland March 20 183 1 

Dear Wife. 

I arrived at Portland about half past seven in the even- 
ing and next day attended the Legislature in the forenoon 
but have since been confined to my room under the care 
of a physician. I caught a violent cold. Have had the 
ague in my face with a violent toothache. Have had one 
tooth extracted and another filled you would not have 
known me for two days so swollen was my face. I am 
better and shall be able to attend the Legislature on Mon- 



Representative to Legislature ^-j 

day. I hope I shall be at home next week on Saturday 
but [it] is uncertain. I have not carried your Bonnet to 
the milHnerys yet. It is said Mrs. Frothingham is the 
best. The valuation committee have not reported and it 
is uncertain when they will. Many things to be done yet 

Yours 

N. Clifford 

The legislature in 1832 met for the first time in Augusta. 
Benjamin White was chosen speaker. Mr. Clifford was 
placed on the important committee on Contested Elec- 
tions. He continued his membership on that on Literary 
Institutions. ' 

Augusta Jan'y 4, 1832. 

Dear Wife 

I tarried in Portland until Monday morning at 8 o'clock 
when I started for Augusta & arrived safe at 6 in the even- 
ing. I have engaged my board at Mr. Snell's with James 
W. Bradbury^ of this place. Very good accommodation. 
Mr. White of Monmouth is speaker. I am well and happy 
but very desirous to hear from you & the children. Write 
me by return mail. I am interrupted and must close. 

yours truly 

Nathan Clifford. 

During the session he came into frequent conflict with 
Hon. William Pitt Fessenden. ^ The latter was of the party 
opposed to Mr. Clifford, who called themselves National 
Republicans or Whigs. He was one of the leaders of the 
anti-Jackson element, and thus it was natural that the 
two men should often meet in the different debates. 

Probably the most important speech of Mr. Clifford 

' Portland Argus, January 13, 17, 1832. 

* United States Senator, 1847-53, Maine Year Book, 1920-21, page 211. 
3 United States Senator, 1854-59, 1859-64, Maine Year Book, 1920-21, 
page 211. 



28 Life of Nathan Clifford 

throughout this winter was that against the rechartering 
of the United States Bank. On February 6, ' he introduced 
the following resolutions : 

"Whereas the Bank of United States has applied to 
Congress for a renewal of its charter, and whereas it is the 
sentiment of both branches of the legislature that its 
renewal would endanger the best interests of the country, 
therefore, 

"Resolved, that our Senators in Congress be instructed 
and our Representatives be requested to vote against said 
renewal. 

"Resolved, that the Secretary of State be directed forth- 
with to transmit to each of our Senators and Representa- 
tives in Congress, a copy of the foregoing preamble and 
resolutions." 

Mr. CHfford's remarks on this question are given as they 
are reported in the Portland Argus of February 24, 1832. 
After a few lines of introduction, he referred to the custom, 
common among public men, of ascertaining the popular 
sentiment upon measures of doubtful expediency, as a 
reason why the President in his message to both Houses of 
Congress in December, 1829, had directed the attention of 
the American people to the subject of the renewal of the 
charter of the Bank of the United States. He then asked 
the indulgence of the House while he adverted to the cir- 
cumstances under which the chief executive had asked for 
the opinion of his constituents. This gave him an oppor- 
tunity to enter upon an encomium of Jackson, and to men- 
tion the unjustifiable attacks which had been made upon 
him. He then touched upon the propriety of the passage 
of resolutions by the legislature. 

He thought no impartial man would gainsay the right 
of discussing and examining the question. He would not 
deny the necessity of a Bank, neither would he recommend 

' Portland Argus. 



Representative to Legislature 29 

one in all respects like that suggested by the President in 
his message, but there were several insuperable objections 
in his mind to a renewal of the present charter of the cor- 
poration now in existence. 

He neither admitted nor contradicted the constitution- 
ality of the institution, but contended it was a corporation 
of very extensive resources without suitable and proper 
restrictions. It was capable of exerting a tremendous 
political influence, which if brought to bear on the freedom 
of elections, might endanger the permanency of our free 
institutions. He contended it was beyond the control of 
the government which created it, extending its operations 
through all parts of the United States, yet all centering to 
one point. He added: 

"Its continuance after the expiration of the present 
charter will enhance, to an alarming degree the value of its 
stock, probably to the amount of $17,000,000. As the 
value of the stock is raised, the inducements to become 
purchasers will be increased, the obvious tendency of 
which is, to throw it more exclusively into the hands of a 
smaller number of individuals, and those of the wealthy 
class. Experience has shown that the number of stock- 
holders has been gradually but constantly diminishing 
since the charter was granted. At that time the number 
was more than 30,000; the present number is less than 
4,000; while the available resources of the Bank have in- 
creased to an astonishing degree. It has at its control 
at this moment $100,000,000 of the property of the 
Union." 

Again, it was a dangerous and unjustifiable monopoly. 
The government of the United States was pledged to grant 
to no other individual or corporation a similar charter 
during the existence of the present Bank. This was con- 
trary to the genius of our institutions. The contract of the 
government would end in the year 1836. The charter was 



so Life of Nathan Clifford 

accepted on that condition. The faith of the nation would 
then be redeemed. 

"Our law abhors entailments and the accumulation of 
large family estates. All the property of the country, in 
the course of twenty years, passes under the distributive 
power of the Courts of Probate. But, Sir, these corpora- 
tions fear not the hand of death. The changes of time 
which scatter the property of private individuals, have no 
terrors for such corporations. The vacant place of a 
deceased stockholder is immediately supplied from among 
the living, and the corporation moves along, rapidly 
increasing in wealth and power." 

"It has been the policy of our government to divide its 
honors and scatter its blessings, and the means of acquiring 
wealth equally among all its citizens. Why should the 
stockholders of the present Bank enjoy longer the exclusive 
right of banking under the United States? When the 
charter expires the generation which granted it will have 
passed away." . . . 

"But, Sir, all writers upon this subject agree in one 
point, that the renewal of the charter will enhance the 
value of the stock which will increase the power and 
dangerous influence of the Bank. . . . If the strong arm of the 
people is unable to arrest its progress now, it is in vain to 
think that hereafter any earthly power within the constitu- 
tional means of the government will ever be able to over- 
throw it." 

He maintained that in its operation it had a direct ten- 
dency to break down the barriers against the encroachment 
of the general government upon the prestige and influence 
of the states : that it had authority to establish an indefi- 
nite number of branches in the several states without their 
consent in defiance of their authority. This, he affirmed, 
was a usurpation of the rights and privileges of the citizens 
of a commonwealth which never ought to be counte- 



Representative to Legislature 31 

nanced, its obvious tendency being to cause collision be- 
tween the general and the state governments. He 
continued : 

' ' The charter of this bank is irreconcilable with a just 
regard to the sovereignty of the states in another respect. 
It has the power to destroy the local Banks. My author- 
ity for this assertion is the President of the Bank himself. 
In answer to a question propounded to him by a Com- 
mittee of Congress to wit: 'Has the Bank ever oppressed 
any of the State Banks?' The President, Mr. Biddle, 
answered, 'It never has, although there are very few 
which might not have been destroyed by an exertion of 
the power of the Bank. '"..." What guarantee have we that 
the Bank will spare its prey in the future ? The reason for 
this lenient course will not exist when the charter shall be 
renewed. How do we know. Sir, that this power may not 
be exercised when the interest of the stockholders may 
require it? But, Sir, I have another objection. By the 
terms of the charter according to the decision of the Su- 
preme Court of the United States, the property invested in 
its branches is not subject to state taxation. We tax all 
the productive property of our citizens for the support of 
government and for the education of youth. But this 
corporation has authority without our consent to establish 
its branches in every village in the state, to take and hold 
property, and to supply a circulating medium on terms 
which are not granted to our citizens, and yet, Sir, we have 
no right to lay a tax upon such property for any purpose 
whatever. Again, Sir, the public is not properly secured 
against the failure and bad management of the institution. 
The consequences of this failure would be immense; and 
the loss to the public almost incalculable; and yet the 
stockholders are not liable in their individual capacity in 
any respect. All the security which the public has 
against such disastrous consequences, is the assets of the 



32 Life of Nathan Clifford 

corporation. The stockholders of the Banks of this state 
are liable in their private capacity to the amount of their 
stock after the failure of their Bank. 

"Another objection, Sir, to the renewal of the charter is 
that eight millions and a half of the stock of the bank is 
owned by foreigners, and no restriction which can be 
annexed to the present charter would divest them of the 
interest already acquired. Such restriction would impair 
vested rights." 

He considered this to be an insuperable objection which 
Congress could not remove except by erecting a new cor- 
poration with the condition that its stock should not be 
transferable to the subjects of a foreign power. If the 
charter was renewed, they would legislate into the pockets 
of foreigners nearly three millions of dollars, the enhanced 
value of their stock. He continued: 

"Under the present charter the whole stock may be 
transferred to foreigners except $2,000, and the amount 
owned by the United States, without impeding the opera- 
tion of the corporation. Thus, Sir, we should have among 
us, in war or in peace, a foreign influence beyond the con- 
trol of the government, and one which might endanger the 
Hberties of the people. Sir, when a foreign power shall own 
the stock of this bank, with all its party machinery scat- 
tered throughout these United States, our liberties will be 
at an end. 

' ' No one can safely deny the existence of all these evils. 

"A charter containing such principles, in the hands of 
unprincipled men, might exert a very corrupting influence 
and lead to very disastrous consequences. It is the part of 
wisdom to provide against such evils. No matter whether 
the Bank is well conducted or not, we ought to have ample 
security that it shall, under all circumstances, continue 
to be well conducted. . . . 

"Now, Sir, what is the justification of continuing a 



Representative to Legislature 33 

charter containing so many objectionable features. Its 
friends say that it has done much good in restoring a 
sound currency and in compelling the State Banks to 
resume specie payments, which had been suspended. 
Whatever benefits in the future are to be derived from the 
present Bank, may also be secured to the community in a 
new corporation divested of many of the latitudinarian 
principles contained in the present charter." 

He denied that this Bank alone had been instrumental 
in rehabilitating the currency of the country. No doubt it 
had exerted a remote influence. He thought it was neces- 
sary, in order to obtain a proper understanding of this 
subject, to look behind the period when the Bank of the 
United States was chartered, for the removal of the causes 
which had embarrassed the fiscal concerns of the govern- 
ment. 

"The nation had scarcely recovered from the em- 
barrassments of the Revolutionary War, when our nego- 
tiations with foreign countries were again interrupted, and 
after repeated aggressions on the part of Great Britain in 
claiming the right of searching our vessels and impressing 
our seamen, in 1812 war was again declared with that 
great naval power. 

"This, Sir, v/as the second War of Independence. At 
this period the expenses of the nation were immense, 
exceeding eighty milHons of dollars, and much beyond the 
available resources of the people. Our commerce was 
crippled, and the avenues for acquiring wealth were closed. 
Pubhc confidence in the stability of the government was 
shaken, combinations were formed to effect a dissolution 
of the union. This will be denied. Sir, but I have author- 
ity that such was the case. In the latter part of 18 14, a 
Treaty of Peace was made. Then, Sir, the state of the 
country assumed a different aspect. Party spirit was 
smothered. All embarrassing restrictions were taken off 



34 Life of Nathan Clifford 

our commerce. Our negotiations with foreign countries 
were renewed and placed on a better basis; ships were 
built, public confidence was restored and all the machinery 
of an enterprising and industrious people successfully put 
in motion. The State Banks underwent legislative revi- 
sion, their exorbitant issues were checked by suitable 
restrictions. Old charters were revived and new ones 
granted, and in fact, every measure adopted to avert the 
further progress of the calamities which a distracted state 
of the country had produced." 

He contended that these among other causes had con- 
tributed largely to a restoration of the currency of the 
nation. 

In conclusion, he said, "If we must have a Bank," and 
he would not deny that such an institution was a conven- 
ient medium for the collection of the revenue, ' ' let us 
have a new corporation, composed of the citizens of 
this country, within the control of the people, the legiti- 
mate source of all power and free from the obnoxious fea- 
tures of the existing charter of the United States Bank. 
The stock should not be transferable to the subjects of a 
foreign power, and a violation of this salutary provision 
should be declared an indictable offense, accompanied 
with a forfeiture of stock so transferred. The stock and 
other property of the branches, at least, ought to be liable 
to state taxation. The states ought to have the authority 
to preclude the establishment of branches within their 
limits, without their consent, and the stockholders ought 
to be made liable in their private capacity to the amount of 
their stock." 

This speech of Mr. Clifford was answered by Mr. Fessen- 
den in a very able argument of considerable length. ^ After 
admitting that his remarks would probably have no effect 
on a legislature whose minds were already made up on the 

» Portland Advertiser, February 28, 1832. 



Representative to Legislature 35 

question at issue, he proceeded to state his reasons against 
the resolution. He commenced by saying that the private 
and personal affairs of Andrew Jackson had nothing to do 
with the rechartering of the United States Bank. He 
added that inasmuch as there was no evidence of abuse of 
its powers, he did not see any reason for believing that it 
would change its policy in the future. He saw no force in 
Mr. Clifford's contention as to the entailment of privileges 
upon a certain class of individuals because a stockholder 
could sell his stock at any time, and the possession of 
shares by a man to-day, did not mean that the same per- 
son would own them to-morrow. The distributing func- 
tion of the Courts of Probate applies equally to all kinds 
of property. As to the exclusive right of banking under 
the United States law, he said it was well known that no 
group of men would have hazarded their assets in such an 
undertaking at the time of the incorporation unless this 
permission had been given them. 

He saw no harm in the fact that an extension of the 
charter would enhance the value of the stock, inasmuch as 
the United States was the largest owner thereof, and all 
citizens would thus benefit by the increased value of the 
government's holdings. He thought it a very advantage- 
ous circumstance that foreign capital had come in to aid in 
building up our new country. If it were to be true that 
when a prolongation of the present privileges had expired 
it would be impossible to refuse to renew again, it would be 
only because the bank had become so necessary that all 
citizens demanded its continuance, or because its directors 
had been able to perpetrate a fraud on the whole elector- 
ate by imbuing them with a false idea of the importance of 
the institution. For his part he believed the voters to be 
too intelligent to be the victims of such mistake. Nor did 
he fear that its officers would be so stupid as to establish 
branches in any community where the need was not clearly 



36 Life of Nathan Clifford 

manifested. He held the opinion that the Hability of the 
stockholders was sufficient under the circumstances. He 
said that he considered Mr. CHfford had confused the 
meaning of the word "currency" and "finances." Mr. 
Clifford's arguments relating to the causes which had aided 
in producing the present prosperous state of the country 
related to the rehabilitation of its financial condition, and 
it was to the Bank alone that was to be ascribed the im- 
provement in the currency. 

The following letter to Mrs. Clifford refers to the debate 
with Mr. Fessenden on this resolution and to other matters 
on which the two men had been at variance. The phase 
"teem with scurrility" seems rather stronger than the 
comments in the Advertiser would warrant and must be 
set down to the heat of conflict. References to Mr. 
Clifford as a gentleman who seems ' ' to move foremost in 
whatever measure can best demonstrate devotion to the 
hero and his beloved Martin," and as one who "responds" 
to the hero's call, are the limit to which this "scurrility" 
attains. 

Augusta Feb 20, 1832 

Dear Hannah, 

Another week has rolled away & the prospect of closing 
the Session has not brightened much although a general 
determination is manifested among the members to wind 
up the business in this month if possible, yet my fears are 
that we shall not be able to do so. 

You will see by the newspapers that my resolutions 
against rechartering the United States Bank have made 
some noise. As far as the public sentiment has been as- 
certained a large portion of the community approve my 
course. From the opposition I have nothing to expect 
but abuse & calumny nor do I wish anything else. When 
federal Newspapers praise me I shall begin to distrust my 
attachment to free principles. The columns of the old 



Representative to Legislature 37 

Portland Advertiser teem with scurrility in regard to 
myself & others of the Democratic party. It moves me 
not. I rather court it. Wm. P. Fessenden is the supposed 
author of much which appears in that paper against me. 
I have had the pleasure in thwarting that Gent, in nearly 
every project which he has started during the Session & 
hope to have the pleasure of defeating him yet again. The 
apportionment Bill is not yet received from Congress. If 
we had that we could close this week. If it is not rec'd 
we have not yet determined what is best to be done. I 
shall write in season for James' or Elisha^ to meet me at 
Standish or Waterboro to one of which places I shall come 
in the stage. Except when immersed in business I am 
really homesick, never so much so in my life. Very little 
to amuse here except occasional parties & then I meet all 
strangers. These sports have no charm for me. Home is 
home though ever so homely. I can spend a fortnight 
here very comfortably after which I should much prefer 
home. I wrote your mother a few days since & requested 
EHsha and Jane Ho write but I have not heard from either 
of them. Does Charles " go to school & the other boy what 
do you intend to call the little fellow ? s I want to see him. 
You must not forget Nancy. ^ She is my babe yet. Have 
you wood enough, if not James will see to have some 
hauled. Tell James to write a long letter all about what is 
going on. Any slanders? You must not be lonely. The 
time will soon pass away. Have you heard from Rumney 
this winter. I have not nor have I written. Have not had 
time. 

My health is pretty good. I have to work hard, 

' James Ayer, elder brother of Mrs. Clifford, bom 1805. 
' Elisha Ayer, elder brother of Mrs. Clifford, bom 1808. 
3 Jane Ayer, younger sister of Mrs. Clifford, bom 1817. 

* Charles Edward Clifford, eldest son of the Judge, bora 1828. 
s Nathan J. Clifford, second son, bora January 12, 1832. 

* Nancy Ayer Clifford, second child, bom 1830, married E. L. Cummings. 



38 Life of Nathan Clifford 

perhaps do more than any member in either branch. I 
am always in my seat during the session & in the interval 
on some committee or other all the time. 

I have attended meeting nearly every Sabbath. I have 
heard Mr. Tappan, Mr. Putnam, Mr. Thurston, Mr. 
Morris, Mr. Knowlton & some others. ' I suppose you 
have seen my bank speech. It is only a sketch. I spoke 
almost a half day. 

Ask James to write about my court business. I feel 
some uneasiness about it. 

Yours Respectfully 

Nathan Clifford 

In his address to the Legislature of 1832, Governor 
Smith again spoke of the New England boundary question, 
and this part of his message was referred to the joint stand- 
ing committee composed of John L. Meguier, T. Boutelle, 
William Emerson, Ruel Williams, Jeremiah O'Brien, 
Nathan Clifford, Joseph M. Gerrish, John D. McCrate 
Charles Dummer, James Steele and Charles Jarvis. ^ Mr. 
William Pitt Fessenden, in writing to a friend, said he 
feared that this delegation would not bring in a document 
which would advocate "strong measures," though he 
hoped that his own views would be adopted. He expected 
opposition to his ideas from the few who had doubts how 
these "strong measures" would affect the prospects of the 
Jacksonians. ^ 

It seems that the apprehensions of Mr. Fessenden were 
unfounded, inasmuch as the report of the committee was 
against the acceptance of the award of the King of the 
Netherlands, and urged the appointment of a competent 

' Preachers in Augusta, Maine. They belonged to different denomina- 
tions. 

* Burrage, Maine in the New England Boundary Controversy, page 192, 
note. 

i Ibid., page 191. 



Representative to Legislature 39 

agent' to carry to the President an expression of their 
feelings. The legislature having approved the resolution, 
the Governor appointed Judge WilHam Pitt Preble^ who 
immediately repaired to Washington, and after conference 
with the President, the Maine delegation in Congress, the 
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and others, 
brought back a suggestion that Maine, for an indemnity, 
should cede to the United States her claim to and jurisdic- 
tion over the territory northerly and easterly of the line 
drawn by the arbiter. 

The substance of Judge Preble's opinions was referred 
by the Governor to the Legislature, and each branch in 
secret session, appointed a committee to consider the same. 
From the House of Representatives Clifford, as chair- 
man, Gerrish, McCrate, Williams, Steele, Jarvis, O'Brien, 
Brownson, Knowlton and Miller were chosen. ^ As a result 
the following resolution was adopted : 

"That upon the appointment, by the President of the 
United States, of a person or persons to enter into nego- 
tiations with this State for the relinquishment, by this State 
to the United States, of her claim to said territory and 
for the cession of the jurisdiction thereof, on the one part ; 
and for an ample indemnity therefor, on the other part, 
and notice thereof being communicated to the Governor, 
the Governor, with advice of council, be and he is hereby 
authorized and requested to appoint three Commissioners 
on the part and in behalf of this State, to treat with such 
person or persons, so appointed by the President, on the 
subject aforesaid ; and any agreement or treaty, to be made 
in pursuance of this resolve, is to be submitted to the legis- 
lature of Maine for approval or rejection ; and until such 

» Barrage, page 192. 

^ Associate Justice, Supreme Judicial Court of Maine, 1820-1828, Maine 
Register, 1920-21, page 209; Burrage, page 193. 
^ Burrage, pages 194-199. 



40 Life of Nathan Clifford 

agreement or treaty be so submitted to, and approved by, 
the Legislature of Maine, nothing herein contained shall 
be construed, in any way, as implying the assent of this 
State to the line of boundary recommended by the arbiter, 
or to the right of the general Government to adopt or 
sanction that Hne instead of the line described in the 
treaty of 1783."^ 

It was also urged that the governor be requested forth- 
with to give notice of this action to the agent of the State 
of Maine at Washington. The recommendations of the 
committee^ were adopted only after several attempts at 
amendment. 

It seems that the characteristic of continuing in session 
longer than expected is not confined to present day legis- 
latures. The custom apparently dates back to 1832, at 
least, as is evident from Mr. Clifford's correspondence 
with his wife. 

Augusta Feb. 27, 1832. 

Dear Wife 

I am still at Augusta and cannot say when I shall re- 
turn. We intend to adjourn Saturday but that is not 
definitely agreed upon. When the time for adjournment is 
agreed upon I shall write for some one to meet me at 
Swetts, 3 to which place I shall come in the stage. 

We have an immense amount of business of a private 
nature. The North Eastern boundary lines will continue 
to take up a great deal of my time. 

You must be contented & I shall come as soon as pos- 
sible. I am extremely desirous to close the Session but it is 
not in my power alone. My health is pretty good, bad 
cold. Write on receipt of this. 

Yours, 

N. Clifford, 

' Burrage, page 202. " Portland Argus, March 1 6. 1832. 

3 Famous road house in Hollis. 



Representative to Legislature 41 

In reading the records of the first two years spent by 
Mr. Clifford at the legislature, it is evident that his position 
at the close of the period was very different from that at 
the beginning. At the opening of his initial term, it took 
some time for him to find himself, and to feel sure enough 
of his status to warrant the assumption by him of more 
than a listener's part. He was, however, not the kind of 
man to occupy such a place long. Gradually he made his 
way to comparative confidence and later to complete mas- 
tery of the details and responsibiHties of his office. That he 
had won the esteem and confidence of his fellow members 
is shown by his election as speaker pro tern on Feb. 22, 
1832, ' by a vote of 94 to 2J, during the illness of Mr. White. 

His close friends were the leaders among the Democrats 
of that time. Mr. Dunlap, Mr. Fairfield, Mr. James W. 
Bradbury, and Mr. Hugh J. Anderson, were all men of 
prominence and influence, and loyally aided Mr. Clifford 
in his future career. Success politically comes from a 
variety of causes, one of the most important of which is 
the association with the proper group in the party. Mr. 
Clifford apparently chose well. He was about to enter 
upon a career of almost unbroken public service lasting 
the remainder of his life. Friends of the right sort were a 
valuable asset. 

' Portland Argus, February 28, 1832. 



CHAPTER III 

Representative to Legislature and Attorney General 
of Maine 

During the session of the legislature in 1 832, a gathering 
of the Democrats of that body was held in the Representa- 
tives' chamber. A committee of ten were chosen "to take 
into consideration what measures should be adopted by 
this convention to secure a representation of the party of 
this state in the convention to be holden at Baltimore in 
May next for the purpose of nominating a candidate for 
Vice-President of the United States, and to report resolu- 
tions, expressive of the sentiments of this convention in 
relation to the present national administration." Messrs. 
McGuire, Emerson, Talbot and Smith of the Senate, and 
Messrs. White, Clifford, Jarvis, Knowlton, McCrate and 
Steele of the House made up this delegation. 

They drafted a document favoring Jackson and Van 
Buren for President and Vice-President, also stating that 
the action of the Senate of the United States in rejecting 
the nomination of Mr. Van Buren as Minister Plenipo- 
tentiary to Great Britain "finds no justification or excuse," 
and that the Senators from the State of Maine in voting 
with the majority "have violated their oath to their con- 
stituents and forfeited all claim to public confidence," 
since they acted contrary to the wishes of the greater 
number of the people of the state. These resolutions were 
introduced by Mr. Clifford and were adopted unani- 
mously. ' 

' Portland Argus, March 2, 1832. 
42 



Representative and Attorney General 43 

The Senators so severely criticized by the Democrats 
were John Holmes, of Alfred, and Peleg Sprague of Hallo- 
well. ' These gentlemen were both Whigs, who on their 
return to their native state, after the adjournment of 
Congress, were given a very enthusiastic reception by the 
members of their own party. At a dinner tendered them 
by the admiring citizens of the City of Portland, references 
to their being saviors of their country and holders of the 
breach were not infrequent. The two divergent views of 
their action, as expressed above, show the height to which 
factional feeling had arisen at the time of President Jack- 
son's second nomination. 

The alleged objection to Mr. Van Buren for minister 
was that he had introduced internal party contests into 
diplomacy, while Secretary of State, by certain instruc- 
tions to McLane, at the time the latter held the mission 
to Great Britain. ^ Van Buren had later resigned as Secre- 
tary of State, assigning as a reason that as he was a candi- 
date for the succession, it was not proper for him to remain 
in the cabinet. ^ President Jackson, in order to keep his 
favorite prominently in the public eye, had nominated him 
as minister to Great Britain, which appointment had failed 
of ratification in the Senate, probably for no other cause 
than that of President Jackson's desire for its approval. 
Therefore, the action of the Maine delegation in censuring 
the stand of the United States Senate, and in criticizing 
the attitude of the Maine senators, was in reality nothing 
but a vote of confidence in President Jackson. That Mr. 
Clifford was responsible for this position, and was also the 
father of the resolutions against the United States Bank, 
seems to carry out the contention of the Portland Adver- 

' Portland Advertiser, August 14, 1832. 

» Andrew Jackson (Am. Statesmen Series) by W. G. Sumner, page 210. 
3 Martin Van Buren (Am. Statesmen Series) by Ed. M. Shephard, page 
195- 



44 Life of Nathan Clifford 

User, mentioned in the last chapter, showing that when- 
ever the administration wished for a measure of support, 
it could count on him not to fail it. The advocacy by the 
Maine Democrats of Mr. Van Buren should be remem- 
bered in connection with the subsequent preference of Mr. 
CHfford for Mr. Van Buren over Mr. Polk, for the presi- 
dency in 1844. 

It is interesting to note that the delegates to the Na- 
tional conclave were chosen by the party leaders who had 
assembled at the state capital during the session of the 
legislature, and not by means of the district and state con- 
vention as at the present time. This course is readily ex- 
plained by the difficulty of communication, though oc- 
casionally the latter method was used. However, trouble 
and expense were saved by the assumption on the part of 
members of any political organization, gathered together 
primarily for other business, of the duties and powers now 
exercised by the bodies elected for the particular purpose, 
neither practice having any sanction except that of custom. * 

At an adjourned meeting of the convention, the com- 
mittee reported a list of delegates to attend the national 
body in Baltimore. Among the number so selected were 
Jeremiah Goodwin, John Fairfield and Nathan Clifford 
from York County. Others of note were Robert P. Dun- 
lap of Brunswick, and Hugh J. Anderson of Belfast. ^ 

It is well to stop to consider what an experience it must 
have been for a young man in Mr. Clifford's position to be 
elected to serve in such a capacity. The journey from 
Newfield to Washington or Baltimore for a young country- 
bred man of twenty-nine years of age in the year 1832 must 
have been a never-to-be-forgotten event. In 1830 there 
were but twenty-three miles of railroad in the country. ^ 

' Bryce, American Commonwealth, vol. ii., page 177. 

^ Argus, March 6, 1832. 

3 McMaster, History of the People of the United Stales, vol. 5, page 145. 



Representative and Attorney General 45 

In 1832 short stretches of track had been laid on which cars 
were drawn, sometimes by horses, sometimes by mules, 
but less often by steam engines. As the Baltimore and 
Ohio was the first one to be operated by steam, it is possible 
that Mr. Clifford travelled a small portion of his way by 
some such conveyance. There were also at this time a few 
steamboat lines along the Atlantic coast. One ran from 
Providence to New York, and another from New York to 
Annapolis, so that the trip could have been made largely 
by water. ^ However, both these means would have been 
so novel to Mr. Clifford, it is inconceivable that no men- 
tion of such a remarkable occurrence should be made, if it 
had fallen to his lot. As illustrating the mode common at 
that time, it may be said that in 1832 there were ninety- 
three lines of stages running out of Boston, ^ but the first 
locomotive in Massachusetts was operated over the Boston 
& Worcester Railroad in 1834.^ As it is doubtful if Mr. 
Clifford had ever been farther away from home than 
Boston, the coach and carriage had probably been the only 
vehicles ever patronized by him. Judging from the two 
letters to his wife which are hereafter quoted in full, his 
entire journey was made in the way which was then com- 
monly in use. 

It had been prophesied that a Federal Government in 
the United States could never succeed because of the great 
difficulty of communication between the widely scattered 
sections of the country. One can well sympathize with 
such a statement when he reads of Mr. Clifford's sixty- 
six hour trip from Providence to Washington, if he fully 
comprehends the slowness and hard ships incident to travel 
ninety years ago. 

' See map, McMaster's History of the People of the United States, vol. v., 
page 148. 

=• Crawford, Romantic Days in Old Boston, page 331. 
3 Ibid., page 343. 



46 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Fanny Kemble, an English actress, writes in her diary 
at some length of a tour which she took in this country in 
the year 1832. The coaches then in use would have been 
far from comfortable on a smooth road, but along the 
American stage routes the journey must have been terrible. 
She speaks of riding over whole trees thrown across their 
path, and bumping and jolting to a terrific extent. Add 
to this the lack of any proper sleeping accommodations, 
together with the fact that food was served at wayside 
houses at long intervals; then picture the condition of a 
wayfarer in a driving easterly rain storm or a New Eng- 
land blizzard, and one would scarcely hope that the ' ' good 
old days" may return. The only redeeming feature of 
such an episode seems to have been the fairly good meals 
and rooms furnished at certain hotels. The inns, which 
were the termini of the day's run, acquired a reputation for 
hospitality and good cheer, extending far and wide. The 
roaring fires, warm quarters and well cooked food of these 
hostelries must indeed have been a godsend to the poor 
creatures who had been worn out by long exposure to the 
barbarous conveyances of those days. ' 

The Democratic convention held at Baltimore in 1832 
was the first national gathering of delegates of that party 
ever held in this country. The Whigs and the Anti- 
Masons had met in presidential conclave during the pre- 
vious year. Thus Mr. Clifford was present at one of the 
very earliest instances of the use of an American-born 
device for the nomination of candidates for office, which 
was to dominate our political history for the next hundred 
years. ' The records of the proceedings show how much of 
an experiment it was then considered, and we may seri- 
ously doubt whether the practice would have been con- 

' American History told by Contemporaries, Hart, vol. iii., page 564; also 
Crawford, Romantic Days in Old Boston, pages 348-50. 
" Bryce, American Commonwealth, vol. ii., page 177. 



Representative and Attorney General 47 

tinued had not the country in future years been knit 
together by the great transcontinental raihoad systems. 

Jackson was chosen by unanimous consent. Appar- 
ently, his renomination had been a foregone conclusion. 
Indeed, so much was this the case, that Niles' Register ' in 
its account of the event makes no mention of the vote for 
Jackson, but speaks only of the selection of Van Buren 
as a candidate for Vice-President, thus displacing Calhoun, 
the running mate of ' ' Old Hickory, " during his first term. ^ 

An interesting feature of the assembly was that the 
venerable Charles Carroll of CarroUton, at that time the 
sole survivor of the signers of the Declaration of Independ- 
ence, was asked to sit upon the platform as the guest of 
honor, but had to refuse, on account of ill health. 

City of Boston May 13, 1832 

Dear Wife 

1 started from Alfred Saturday morning at three o'clock 
and here last evening at five in company with Mr. Good- 
win ^ and found Mr. Fairfield'' at the Commercial Coffee 
House 5 where we shall stay until tomorrow morning (Mon- 
day). At five oclock we start for Providence (R. I.) and 
intend to sleep in the city of New York. I passed through 
Ipswich, but did not see George. Also passed through 
Beverly, Salem & Charleston. Last evening was spent in 
company with David Henshaw the collector of this Port a 
very pleasant & intelligent man. To day I shall attend 

■ May 26, 1832. 

2 Biog. Cong. Direct., page 435. 

3 Goodwin, Jeremiah, of Alfred, State Treasurer, 1839, Maine Register, 
1920-1, page 205. 

4 Fairfield, John, Saco, Rep. of Decisions, 1832. Member 24th Congress, 
1835; 25th, 1837; Gov. of Me., 1839, 1842, 1843; U. S. Senate, 1843, Maine 
Register, 1920-1, pages 203, 210, 211, 213. 

s Commercial Coffee House, a favorite tavern for stage travellers. It 
stood in a couit yard paved with cobblestones, where Exchange Club now 
is. Crawford, Romantic Days in Old Boston, page 338. 



48 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Doct. Channings* meeting in the forenoon & Dr. Bee- 
cher's' in the afternoon. I had a very pleasant ride. The 
weather is not warmer here than at Newfield & vegetation 
but Httle in advance. People just commencing planting. 
I saw Uncle Simpson ' at Greenland in his field but did 
not speak with him. Last evening we went to the market 
which is always lighted up in great stile on Saturday 
evening & filled with all sorts of provision kind as well as 
people of every class ' ' from gay to lively & from lively to 
severe. ' ' " Plenty of fine Radishes. The market is built of 
hewn granite, is f our-or-five hundred feet in length & per- 
haps sixty feet in width. An isle through the centre, per- 
haps twenty feet in width, the whole length of the building 
— on each side of which the building is divided off into 
stalls which are rented by the City corporation to people 
who follow marketing. One is filled with Beef one with 
veal one with fruit, one with cheese, some as large as Dr. 
Ayer's &c, everything you can think of. Boston has in- 
creased some in size but more in beauty since I was here 
before. Most of the new buildings (& they are constantly 
tearing down old & building new) are stone front of beauti- 
ful granite, the handsomest stone in the world. They are 
enlarging the City by building out into the Mill Pond. It 
is said that 300 acres of the City has been made by filling 
up the sea. The place where I stop was a place of anchor- 
age for vessels. My ride has done me good. I feel well & 
thus far much pleased with my journey. You shall hear 
from me often. Tell James I have seen the Limington 
paper. A miserable dirty thing — will do no one any harm 
but its owners & perhaps they are safe having nothing of 

' Channing, William Ellery. Unitarian minister of church in Federal 
St. American History Told by Contemporaries, vol. iii., page 642. 

' Beecher, Dr. Lyman. Congregational minister of Bowdoin St. Church. 
Crawford, Romantic Days in Old Boston, page 98. 

3 Mr. Clifford's mother's name was Lydia Simpson. 

* "From grave to gay, from lively to severe." Pope, £^03' on Man. 



Representative and Attorney General 49 

character or money to lose. Tell EJisha ' to be careful of 
his health. His life is in his own hands. He can preserve 
it in one way & that only. I think he will. I set by him & 
wish him well but cannot help him. He must help himself 
or no mortal man can render him any benefit. Take good 
care of the children & be careful of the fires. 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



City of Baltimore May 21, 1832 

My Dear Wife 

I arrived in this city last Saturday evening after having 
paid a very pleasant visit at Washington. I was but 66 
hours travelling from Providence to Washington City 
where we staid from Wednesday to Saturday. I saw & 
shook hands with President Jackson at his house, a fine 
looking man in excellent health & spirits. He has been 
slandered more than I supposed. I did think there must 
have been something to make it out of, but I assure you & 
certainly I have no reason to disguise to you with whom 
I never dissemble, he has been foully slandered. He 
is a gentleman in his manners not a fop. A man of strong 
powers and a well cultivated mind. His dress is plain 
but good. In fact he is a republican such as we 
could wish to see but seldom find. He thinks of visit- 
ing the northern States this season. Our convention as- 
sembled to day. I have had no opportunity to count 
them, but it is the largest convention of delegates I 
ever saw & estimated at five hundred — fifty from old 
Virginia. I have seen most of the great men of our 
country, Jackson, Calhoun, Clay, Webster, Livingston,^ 

• Elisha Ayer, elder brother of Mrs. Clifford. 

' Edward Livingston. Member of Congress in the 4th, 5th & 6th Con- 
gress as a Democrat. U. S. District Attorney. MayorofN. Y. Moved to 
New Orleans, 1804. Rep. to Congress from La., i8th, 19th & 20th Congress 
as a Jackson Democrat. U. S. Senator from La., Sec. of State 1 831 to 1833. 



50 Life of Nathan Clifford 

McLane, ' Woodbury, ^ Cass, ' Wirt," Forsyth, ^ Tazewell,*' 
Hayne, ^ etc. , to most of whom I was introduced. It is 
not in my power & I have not time to describe all the 
cities. Baltimore is by far the most pleasant I have 
seen. I did not call at New York but shall on my re- 
turn. I cannot tell when I shall come home but proba- 
bly as soon as I expected. We have had green peas 
several times. Radishes in abundance. We could not get 
boarded at a public house in Baltimore, every room was 
taken up before we returned from Washington City. A 
great many strangers. The Races have just commenced. 
We board at Mrs. Lenchenbergs, a fashionable house. It 
is expensive travelling. I shant buy much. 



Minister plenipotentiary to France, 1833. Distinguished on account 
of long legal battle with Thomas Jefferson, for which see Beveridge's 
Life of John Marshall, vol. iv., page 100, et seq., Biog. Cong. Direct, 
p. 656. 

' Louis McLane. Rep. to 15th, i6th, 17th, i8th & 19th Congress as a 
Democrat. U. S. Senator from Delaware. Minister to England. Sec. 
of Treasury, 1831 to 33. Sec. of State, 1833. Pres. of Baltimore & Ohio 
R. R., 1837-1847. Biog. Cong. Direct, p. 673. 

2 Levi Woodbury. Gov. of N. H., 1823. U. S. Senator as a Democrat, 
1825-1831. Sec. of Navy, 1831. Sec. of Treas., 1834 to 1841. Justice Sup. 
Ct. U. S., 1845 to 1 85 1. Biog. Cong. Direct. 

3 Lewis Cass. Sec. of War under Jackson. Minister to France. U. S. 
Senator from Michigan as Democrat, 1845 to 1848, Defeated as Dem. 
candidate for Pres., 1848. Sec. of State under Buchanan. 

4 WilUam Wirt. Very dissipated, but very brilliant lawyer, associated 
with the government attorneys in the prosecution of Burr for treason, also 
counsel in Dartmouth College case, and other famous constitutional litiga- 
tion. Beveridge's Life of Marshall. 

s John Forsyth. Atty. Gen. of Georgia, 1 808. Member 13th, 14th, & 
1 5th Congress as a Democrat. U. S. Senator, 1818. Minister to Spain, 18 19. 
Again elected to Congress and Senate. Sec. of State under Jackson, 1834. 
Re-appointed by Van Buren. 

* Littleton W. Tazewell. Member 6th Congress as Democrat from Vir- 
ginia. Commissioner under Florida Treaty with Spain. Declined mission 
to Gt. Britain. U. S. Senator. 

7 Robert Y. Hayne. Opponent of Webster in famous debates. See 
Biographical Congressional Directory under different names. 



Representative and Attorney General 51 

I have so many about me I cannot write. When I come 
home I tell you all. 

Yours 

N. Clifford 

Mr. Clifford was once more elected to the legislature in 
this year (1832) and at the opening of the session was made 
speaker. He was but twenty-eight years of age at this 
time, filled with great ambitions, but still aware of his 
inexperience and his lack of knowledge requisite for the 
post. His address to the House upon his election is inter- 
esting for this reason : 

Gentlemen of the House of Representatives : 

I enter upon the discharge of the duties which your 
partiality has assigned me, deeply impressed with a sense 
of the respectability devolving upon the presiding officer 
of this responsible and highly intelHgent body, and with an 
anxious desire to discharge those duties in a manner to 
deserve the high distinction conferred upon me by the 
representatives of this flourishing, democratic State. 
Permit me to tender you my sincere acknowledgments for 
this manifestation of your confidence and respect, and to 
assure you I am fully sensible how much I must depend for 
any measure of success in the performance of* the intri- 
cate duties incident to this responsible station, upon your 
friendly aid and indulgence. Entire accuracy will not be 
expected from one of my limited experience and acquaint- 
ance with parliamentary proceedings. All I can promise 
is an honest discharge of the duties, and a constant en- 
deavor to maintain the honor and dignity of this House 
by properly enforcing its rules and orders, and by a strict 
adherence to the well settled usages of deliberative as- 
semblies. 

The circumstances under which we are convened, are 



52 Life of Nathan Clifford 

peculiarly interesting and satisfactory. The elections in 
the State and Nation which for a long time have excited a 
deep interest among all classes of our citizens, have termi- 
nated in the triumphant vindication of republican prin- 
ciples, and in a manner so decisive as to induce the belief 
that all parties will acquiesce in the decision of the popu- 
lar voice, which in a free government, must ever be re- 
garded as the sovereign power of the land to which all 
should bow with the most respectful deference. It is to be 
hoped that our deliberations will not be characterized by 
those party animosities which have disturbed the har- 
mony of preceding Legislatures, but that our best efforts 
will be directed under the blessings of Divine Providence, 
to the attainment of such results as shall secure to us, on 
our return to our constituents, their warm approbation. 
Believe me, gentlemen, that in the accomplishment of 
these desirable objects, you will receive my personal aid 
and hearty cooperation. 

Only one letter during his first term as speaker has been 
found. It was written toward the close of the session and 
shows that even the uncompromising young Democrat was 
still somewhat susceptible to the blandishments of wealth 
as displayed in the form of private carriages after a very 
intimate association with those of a public character. 



State House Feb 26 1833 

My dear Wife 

This is the last time I shall write you before returning 
home. We shall adjourn Thursday or Friday this week. I 
shall come home in a private conveyance in company with 
Hon. Mr. Bradbury. Cannot say what day shall arrive at 
home. Shall not be able to travel quite as fast as I should 
in stages. I should think might be home Saturday or 
Sunday but may not before Monday. Shall come as soon 



Representative and Attorney General 53 

as possible. I am well. Things go on finely. I have just 
been chosen Chairman of the State Central Committee of 
Correspondence an honorable station without profit. 

Yours in haste 

Nathan Clifford 

Inasmuch as the duties of the Chair during the session of 
1833 and 1834 took the young man out of any active par- 
ticipation in the debates of the House, it has been deemed 
advisable to quote Mr. Clifford's remarks in reply to the 
customary vote of thanks at the close of the Legislature of 

1833, together with those at the opening and end of that of 

1834, in order that the reader may trace as far as possible 
from the speaker's own utterances the development of his 
character and the crystallization or change in his opinions. 

Address^ 

I feel with deep and grateful emotions the honor 
conferred upon me by the resolution just passed, approving 
of the manner in which the services of the Chair have been 
performed, during the present session. It has been my 
constant endeavor to merit your confidence and esteem by 
a faithful and impartial performance of the various duties 
devolving upon me and by an unremitting exertion to 
facilitate the public business and to place every subject 
before you in a proper and acceptable manner. It is a 
matter of pride and satisfaction that my labors have been 
rewarded by this very flattering testimonial of the repre- 
sentatives of the people. A spirit of frankness will compel 
me to acknowledge my errors, and for which excuse I must 
refer you to my inexperience, which was known to you at 
the time of my election. I am fully sensible how much 
must be attributed to your friendly aid and support for 
every measure of success which has attended my effort, 

' Portland Argus, March 6, 1833. 



54 Life of Nathan Clifford 

and for your indulgence on all occasions I tender you 
individually my most unfeigned acknowledgments. If 
during our association and while passing upon a great 
variety of subjects of general interest and importance, any 
differences of opinion have existed among us, as the hour 
of separation approaches, I trust every vestige of unkind- 
ness will be effaced from our memories, and that we shall 
return to our respective homes with feelings of mutual 
regard and respect. It is with pleasure that I bear testi- 
mony to the industry and zeal with which you have de- 
voted yourselves to the transaction of the great variety 
of public and local business which has been presented to 
the consideration of the present Legislature, to the fidelity 
and constancy with which you have sought to promote the 
public good, and to the unanimity and harmony which 
have characterized your deliberations. May we not con- 
fidently hope that the measures we have adopted and the 
motives by which we have been actuated will receive the 
approving voice of the people whose right it is to scrutinize 
the doings of their servants. I flatter myself that the cir- 
cumstances under which we are to separate are no less 
pleasing and satisfactory than those under which we were 
convened. In reviewing the conditions of our country 
there is "much of hope" and "nothing of fear." The re- 
cent events which have transpired at Washington afford 
the most pleasing anticipations for the permanency and 
continued success of our free institutions, and furnishes the 
most cheering evidence that public opinion is able to over- 
throw not only the combination of aristocracy and wealth, 
but to silence forever the clamors of disunion and anarchy. 
While all around us are prosperous and happy, a sense of 
gratitude will induce us to remember Him from whom all 
these blessings flow. 

Gentlemen, we are about to close our public labors and 
to mingle again with the people. It is a melancholy 



Representative and Attorney General 55 

thought that we may never meet again and probably no 
future Legislature will have the honor to reckon among its 
members any of the Patriots of the Revolution. Permit 
me to wish you a safe and happy return to the bosom of 
your respective families and friends where I doubt not 
you will continue to enjoy all the comforts of domestic 
life and receive the increasing confidence of your con- 
stituents as the reward of faithful public service and 
private virtue. 

Address at opening of Session of 1834 

Gentlemen of the House of Representatives :'^ 

I feel myself under deep and lasting obligations of grati- 
tude for this manifestation of your confidence and esteem. 
Accept my grateful acknowledgments for your partiality 
and favor, and, believe me, no exertion within my ability, 
shall be wanting, in discharging the responsible duties 
devolving upon me, to gain your approbation, and justify 
your choice to the people of the State, whose servants we 
are, and whose indubitable right it is to examine with 
scrupulous care, the motives of all who are entrusted with 
the important subjects of legislation. 

The experience I have had in the situation to which you 
have called me, has not failed to impress me with a sense 
of responsibiUty assumed in accepting the office, and to 
admonish me of the difficulties attending a discharge of its 
duties in a manner to give general satisfaction, without 
occasionally disregarding individual requests and inciu-ring 
individual displeasure. It will be my anxious desire to 
satisfy all without distinction of party, but my inflexible 
determination to maintain, on all occasions, the rules and 
orders of the House, and to be governed in all respects by 
its wishes. 

' Portland Argus, January 3, 1834. 



56 Life of Nathan Clifford 

It would be useless for me to deny my connection with 
one of the political bodies of which this House is composed ; 
and a spirit of frankness induces me to acknowledge my 
partiality for those ever living principles of Democracy 
which, while they discard all aristocratic institutions and 
all unnecessary accumulation of power over the persons 
and property of individuals, as hostile to the spirit of 
liberty, seek to promote the happiness and prosperity of 
all, by leaving each to pursue the dictates of his own choice, 
in selecting the means to accomplish those great and valu- 
able purposes. You will pardon me for alluding to political 
distinctions. They are so incorporated into all legislative 
proceedings that hypocritical professions of neutrality 
cannot but be regarded as the misgivings of a cowardly 
disposition, or the subterfuges of selfish and mean policy. 

But while I shall not feel called upon in any vote I may 
give, to sacrifice any principles I may deem essential to 
the welfare of our constituents, it will be my pride and 
ambition so to conduct myself, as an officer, as to merit the 
high commendation of acting as Speaker of the House, and 
not of a party. 

Gentlemen — You are convened for important purposes, 
to act upon important subjects. It is not necessary that I 
should remind you of the magnitude of the interests which, 
under the Constitution, are entrusted to you, and the 
heavy responsibility which any would incur, by violating 
the wishes of those he is chosen to represent. In a govern- 
ment like ours, where all power is derived from the people, 
it requires no argument to prove that public officers may 
justly be held to a rigid accountability. 

With these considerations constantly before us, let all 
our deliberations be characterized by that spirit of modera- 
tion and forbearance, so essential to the proper under- 
standing of every subject, presented for the action of a 
deliberative assembly, especially of one so numerous as the 



Representative and Attorney General 57 

House of Representatives of this State. In all measures 
calculated to promote the general welfare, you will receive 
my constant aid and hearty cooperation; and may the 
blessings of Divine Providence guide you to such results 
as will secure to you, on your return to your constituents, 
their highest commendation. 

At the close of the 1834 legislature, Mr. Abbott of Vas- 
salborough, moved the following resolution ' : 

Ordered the thanks of this House be presented to Nathan 
Clifford, Esquire, Speaker, with assurances of the deep sense 
they entertain of the ability, correctness and impartiality with 
which he has discharged the duties of his high and responsible 
office. 

This motion was passed unanimously. 
Mr. Speaker Clifford replied as follows : 

Gentlemen of the House of Representatives : 

Under all circumstances of life, I shall cherish in grateful 
remembrance the courtesy and kindness you have mani- 
fested towards me during the period I have had the honor 
to preside over your deliberations. The tribute of respect 
contained in the resolution just passed adds much to the 
debt of gratitude which I owe to the members of this body 
for the generous support they have given me on all occa- 
sions in the discharge of the various and responsible duties 
of the Chair to which I have been twice called by the 
unanimous vote of the party with which I am associated, 
and which I am now about to relinquish, without any ex- 
pectation of ever resuming it again. This expression of 
your approbation is the more gratifying to my feelings, 
emanating as it does from a gentleman with whom I have 
maintained the most friendly relations, though politically 
opposed, and whose integrity and purity of motive reflect 

' Portland Argus, March 17, 1834. 



5B Life of Nathan Clifford 

the highest honor upon him as a man and upon the people 
he is chosen to represent. In taking my leave of the House 
permit me to tender to you individually and collectively, 
my humble acknowledgments for the favorable opinion 
you entertain of the manner in which the duties of my 
present situation have been performed. It has been my 
anxious desire to merit your commendation, and to deserve 
the confidence of the people of the State; and whatever 
may be my success in future life, I have the assurance to 
believe that here I have met the reasonable expectations of 
my friends, and in some good degree, given satisfaction 
to all; though sensible I am, that the measure of success 
which has attended my efforts should be ascribed not so 
much to any peculiar qualifications of my own, as to the 
friendly assistance I have always received from the mem- 
bers of this House without distinction of party. 

The length of the session has exceeded my expectations, 
and very much my wishes, though it bears no comparison 
to the great mass of public and local business which has 
been presented to its consideration. It is useless to deceive 
ourselves any longer. For many years to come, there is 
no ground to expect any diminution in the demands upon 
the time and attention of our annual legislature, if indeed 
it were desirable. The existence of such increasing de- 
mands furnishes indubitable evidence of the growing pros- 
perity of our State, and the laudable spirit of enterprise 
which pervades all classes of our citizens. We have a large 
population, scattered over a still larger territory, diversi- 
fied with every facility for improvement which a kind 
Providence ever bestowed upon man. If any are disposed 
to complain, let them look at our extended seacoast, at 
our immense forests, and at our noble rivers, with all the 
various projects of improvement growing out of these 
natural blessings, which annually require the careful and 
serious consideration of the Legislature, and say if they 



Representative and Attorney General 59 

can, that we have been wanting in economy, in industry 
and devotion to the best interests of the State. It becomes 
me on this occasion to bear testimony to the zeal and 
fidehty with which you have devoted yourselves to the 
performance of your respective duties, and to the prompti- 
tude with which you have met every requisition upon 
your time and industry, and to the harmony and good 
feeling which have characterized all your proceedings. 
It may be said without fear of contradiction, that the 
doings of the present Legislature will not suffer in compari- 
son with any which has preceded. 

Gentlemen, the labors of the session are now closed. 
The results of your deliberations are with the people whose 
right it is to pass sentence upon the motives and conduct 
of all their servants. The ability and wisdom which have 
marked your deliberations will not fail to secure to you in 
an intelligent and just community, the rewards of honest 
intentions and of faithful public service. As the hour of 
separation approaches, let all past differences be forgotten; 
and all unkindness effaced from our memories. Accept 
the assurance of my friendly regard, and my fervent 
aspirations for your future prosperity and happiness ; and 
may the smiles of Providence attend you in a safe return 
to your families and friends, where I doubt not you will 
continue to enjoy all that public consideration which is 
justly due to private worth and virtue. 

The winter of 1834 had found Mr. Clifford for the fourth 
time a member of the State Legislature and for the second 
time its speaker. This was the last time he was to take 
any part in the deliberations of that body. It had been an 
interesting experience. It had given the young man 
confidence in himself, and had extended his acquaintance 
beyond the confines of the county of his home. He felt 
he had merited a certain measure of praise for the manner 



6o Life of Nathan Clifford 

in which he had conducted himself in a position of pubUc 
trust and he was now on the lookout for something higher. 
The following letters to Mrs. Clifford all written in 1834, 
besides many references to household matters, show a 
state of mind well satisfied with the past but anxious for 
new honors : 

Augusta J any 3 1834 

Dear Wife 

I have not had spare time enough to write one line to 
you. I tarried in Portland until Monday morning & 
arrived here Tuesday noon. I have engaged board at the 
Mansion House' kept by Rogers with fine accommodations 
but I expect to have to pay for them. You will see by the 
Newspapers I am reelected by the unanimous voice of the 
Democratic party the whole Smith party went for me . . . 
I am in tolerable health. A great deal of local business 
& the prospect of a long Session, though we have organized 
with uncommon dispatch. The federal party are entirely 
silent. I have no doubt I shall succeed in my expectations. 
Take good care of the children & take care and [not] get 
burned up. I shall write as often as I have time. Tell 
George^ to see well to the Barn and James ^ to forward all 

my letters. 

Yours as ever 

Nathan Clifford 

Augusta Saturday evening 12 o'clock Jany 11 1834 

My Dear Wife 

I steal one moment from rest to write you. It is not 
necessary to acquaint you with any political movements 
as you will see all in the newspapers, but am sorry to say 
the prospect is we shall have a long session. I am anxious 

' Built to accommodate members of the Legislature. Portland Argus. 

» George Ayer, younger brother of Mrs. Clifford, born, 181 4. 

3 James Ayer, elder brother of Mrs. Clifford, bom August 3, 1805. 



Representative and Attorney General 6i 

to get through as I do not expect ever to be in the Legisla- 
ture again. All things move to my mind. I have no 
doubt my wishes will be gratified in reference to the subject 
I conversed with you about before I left home. I think 
there can be no mistake. Say nothing. Burn this. I 
wish George to take good care of my colt. Let the stable 
be cleaned out else her hind feet will be higher than her 
head. My love to you & children. I hope you are all 
well. My health is good. My head nearly well, has not 
troubled me any. Write often 

Yours forever 

Nathan Clifford 

Augusta Jany 19, 1834 Sabbath Evening 12 o'clock 

My Dear Wife 

My room is just vacated of company. I do not feel at 
liberty to retire to rest without writing you a word or two. 
How much more happy I should be if at home with you 
and our children though everything moves along to my 
wishes. I have great reason to be thankful for the suc- 
cess which has attended me thus far through life. Provi- 
dence has been kind to me beyond what I had any reason 
to expect from the combination of circumstances which 
surrounded me in youth. The session must be a long one. 
Business increases daily. I fear I shall not be at home in 
February. My health is tolerable. The disease in my 
head is better though not entirely removed. It has not 
troubled me any. My hearing is good. My boarding 
House is a good one. People very kind. Take good care 
of the children. There is more danger of their taking cold 
in this warm weather than when it is cold. How is Maam 
Ayer? You have not mentioned her name. Has she 
wood enough. James must see to that. Tell Elisha he 
must not keep his horse on my hay after he gets well. I 
fear I shall be scant. I want my mare taken good care of. 



62 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Be careful of the fire. You would be in a sad predicament 

to be burned out in my absence Make yourself 

as contented and happy as possible. Remember this is my 
last session but you will say what next. I dare not answer 
though I know. No mistake — Never mind if I am absent 
a part of the time we must love each other the more when 
we are together. Sometimes I am half inclined to give up 
public life & stay at home, but it will not do. Write often 
tell all to write. All the comfort I take is when I 
receive a letter. Have you got your gown made. Who 

made it. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Augusta Jany. 24, 1834. 

My Dear Wife 

Nothing new or strange has occurred here which can be 
of much interest to you and I feel that you would like to 
receive a letter if it does not contain but two lines and even 
should the ideas be less than the words. It is useless to 
think of getting through before the tenth of March. 
We committed yesterday to the several committees more 
than fifty petitions each of which must be the basis of a 
report and perhaps of extended discussion. I never wish to 
be a member again though nothing has occurred contrary 
to my wishes. It is no place to make money and the honor 
while new is pleasing ; when borne for a while loses all its 
weight and influence. No one has greater reason to be 
thankful to his friends for their support than I, nor to be 
satisfied with the measure of success considering the dis- 
advantageous circumstances which surrounded me in the 
outset. They are now all fully overcome & my popu- 
larity is all I could reasonably ask — The President of the 
Senate' has just received intelligence of a great loss by 

» Joseph Williamson of Belfast. 



J 



Representative and Attorney General 63 

fire. Two buildings were consumed worth 3 thousand 
Dollars on which he had a small insurance. Not his dwell- 
ing house. You must be very careful. Yesterday the 
Bank resolutions were discussed to a "House crowded with 
spectators of both sexes." A very animated discussion. 
They passed our House by a vote of 120 to 52. To-day 
they passed the Senate without debate by a vote of 2 1 to 
2, thus sustaining the administration by a vote as decisive 
as any state in the Union can give. The opposition is 
feeble and much discouraged. Our friends are firm and 
well united. The best Legislature I have ever seen, com- 
posed of a set of well informed and strait forward, deter- 
mined men who ask nothing which is not clearly right and 
are determined to submit to nothing that is wrong. I am 
well. You must write three times a week if but to let me 
know how your health & the children are. It is very cold 
have you a plenty of wood? Has the cellar frozen. 
Yours forever 

Nathan Clifford 

Augusta Feb, 3 1834 

My Dear Wife 

After a long delay I once more have found time to write 
a few words. Nothing strange has occurred here. We are 
progressing with all reasonable dispatch with the public 
business. I am not without hope that we shall be able to 
close the Session in this month though the chances are 
against it. My engagements are more pressing this year 
than last. Our new President of the Senate does not supply 
the place of F. O. J. Smith. ' I have not mingled any in 
society here nor shall I be able to and my known pressing 
engagements give me ample excuse. Elisha may let Dr. 

'F. O. J. Smith of Portland. Later Rep. to Congress, I833-1837. 
Prominently connected with W. F. B. Morse in the invention of the tele- 
graph. See references to him in the Pierce-Cliflford atty-gen. controversy. 



64 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Shaw have the back part of my office for the present. I 
am pleased that Dr. Shaw is coming to our place though I 
deeply lament the death of Dr. Ayer. ^ It was not possible 
for me to attend his Funeral though I rank myself among 
the number of his friends who have sustained a great loss ; 
an almost irreparable loss. My health is exceedingly good. 
My love to the children & to you. 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



Augusta Feb. 4 1834 

My Dear Wife 

I have just received your letter in which you say it is 
rumored I am about to leave Newfield & to leave the office 
of Speaker. It is all false. I never stood any better, never 
so well as Speaker as I now stand. Say nothing about my 
being a candidate for any office. Let people suspect & tell 
stories. The matter will be set right in due time, in all 
good time for my enemies. I shall be successful never 
surer, but you must not say so. I have no intention of 
removing from Newfield. I shall not resign the office of 
Speaker and I am in no danger of being removed. Nobody 
(if) ever thought of it. I have the full confidence of all 
parties especially of my friends. 

In haste Yours 

N. Clifford 



Augusta Feb 5 1834 

My Dear Wife 

I beHeve I have written every day for a week and yet 
not one word do I hear from you. My engagements are 

' James Ayer, in whose house Mr. Clifford had an office on his arrival 
in Newfield in 1827. 



Representative and Attorney General 65 

very pressing and probably you have to work hard and it 
would seem you might find time to write occasionally. 
Tomorrow we have the State Convention. People are 
flocking in here from all quarters the town is running over. 
We have spent this whole day upon one Bill setting off 
Bowman's point to Gardiner. If business is to be discussed 
to this length we shall not get home in March. Ask James 
to see if Howard will consent to have all actions continued 
in which he & I are engaged. I hope I shall not have to 
ask the favor again. My business demands my attention 
& hereafter shall receive it unless I should be called away 
by an appointment. That of course cannot be certain 
though I feel sure as I ought to be. My health is exceeding- 
ly good & every [thing] goes to my mind. 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



The various mentions of success and similar good news, 
doubtless refer to his possible appointment as attorney- 
general of the State. Mr. Clifford sought this office as an 
advance up the ladder of the political career which his 
letters show he had deliberately planned for himself. He 
was a home loving man, but felt that his only hope of the 
successful attainment to the prominence to which he 
knew his abilities were capable of leading him was by the 
hard road of public service. This necessitated long and 
frequent absences from wife and family. He accepted the 
chosen course with its burdens. His philosophic attitude 
is shown by his frequent references to his lonesomeness 
coupled with some such phrase as "it is no use to repine," 
"here I must stay," etc. 

That the method of obtaining a wished for political office 
has not changed in the last eighty years, the following is a 
proof. 



66 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Alfred, November 22, 1833 
Hon. Chas. N. Cogswell 

South Berwick (Confidential). 

Dear Sir 

A few days since I received a letter from Nathan Clifford, 
Esq., saying, "Will you please to give me a letter to R. P. 
Dunlap, Esq. upon the subject of Atty. General? — I have con- 
cluded to accept it, provided I can get it without much diffi- 
culty. Will you interest yourself in my behalf? I wish one 
from J. Bradbury, Hayes, Cogswell, Seaver &c. &c. &c. I will 
not make any trouble in pressing for the office, but on the 
contrary will withdraw from the field at any moment when my 
political friends shall advise it. Will you write your views? 
The matter is well understood in Cumberland & my wishes 
will be ably seconded." 

The above is the whole of his letter to me. And the question 
is. — Will the party generally recommend him, & is he qualified 
for the station? 

I know that Hon. Ether Shepley has furnished him with a 
letter, recommending the appointment, and I have understood 
Mr. Mclntire' & other gentlemen have done the same. 

Now will you. Judge Hayes & Mr. Seaver recommend him? 
If so, will you please send your respective letters under cover to 
me? 

I am gratified to perceive Clifford is perfectly willing to be 
advised by his friends — And I know they will not ask his ap- 
pointment, if they believe he will dishonor the Station. He 
probably wants to know what strength he can obtain, forthwith. 
Your's respectfully, 

Jere Goodwin.* 

On the reverse side of the above is a form of letterwhich 
Mr. Goodwin apparently wished written to Governor Diin- 

' Rufus Mclntyre of Parsonsfield. Rep. to Congress 1 827-1 833. Maine 
Register, 1920-1, pages 212, 213. 

' Jeremiah Goodwin. State Treasurer, 1839. Of Alfred. Maine, Register 
1920-21, page 205. 



Representative and Attorney General 67 

lap by the recipient of the first communication. It is 
copied here as it seems a very fair presentation of Mr. 
Clifford's cause. 

Hon. R. P. DuNLAP 
Governor Elect 

Dear Sir 

It is well understood that the office of Attorney General of 
this state will soon become vacant by resignation of Jon^ P. 
Rogers, Esq., the present incumbent, and it is presumed it will 
be a question with you, — who is a fit person for successor in the 
office? 

So far as I can learn, I believe it is the desire of leading 
friends of the democratic party in this county, that Nathan 
Clifford, Esq. of Newfield, should be appointed Mr. Rogers' 
successor; and so far as my humble desire will contribute to 
effect the object in view, I cordially add it. 

You personally know Mr. Clifford, his talents & worth; 
and therefore it becomes unnecessary for me to give my views 
of his claims and qualifications for the station. It is presumed, 
however, the principal objection with you, dear sir, will be, — 
is his knowledge of criminal jurisprudence sufficient to qualify 
him for a ready & able & faithful discharge of the duties of the 
office ? — I will answer I am an incompetent Judge ; but knowing 
as I do, his talents, industry, perseverance and ambitious de- 
sires to qualify himself for any station sought by him, I am 
persuaded a short experience will render him familiar with (the 
laws practice and routine of the duties of the office), and en- 
able him to perform the duties to the perfect acceptance of 
the public and honorably to himself. Therefore I will cor- 
dially and respectfully request you to give the appoint- 
ment' to Mr. CHfford our late able colleague at the Baltimore 
convention. 

' At this time the attorney general was "nominated" by the governor 
and ' ' appointed " " with the advice and consent of the council. ' ' The salary 
was one thousand dollars a year. Laws of Me., 1822, chap. 205. Rev. St. 
0/ Me. 1844, p. 639. See also Constitution of Maine. 



68 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Augusta March lo 1834 

My Dear Wife 

We shall adjourn on Wednesday morning. My nomina- 
tion' will be confirmed on Wednesday at 10 o'clock when 
I shall be immediately qualified & take the stage for Port- 
land where I must purchase some Books, & if possible 
shall take the stage on Thursday morning for Newfield. 
If so, I shall be at home on Thursday afternoon ; if not you 
see I shall be necessarily detained on account of our stage 
till Saturday. That will be avoided if I arrive at Portland 
Wednesday night in season to make my purchases for you 
& myself. My nomination will be unanimously confirmed. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

The following letters, written during his holding of the 
office of attorney general are interesting as giving a picture 
of the life of a busy lawyer, so different from that of the 
present day practitioner. 

Paris May 22, 1834 

My Dear Wife 

I have just closed my business at this court. The Grand 
Jury found two indictments one against Samuel King 
and Joseph C. Small for stealing Bradley's & Warrens 
money of Fryeburg of which you may have heard in 1 829. 
It will excite some interest. Both cases are continued to 
Oct. term, so I have no trials here, but shall be obliged to 
stay here until Friday morning when I shall leave not for 
Augusta as I supposed when I left home but for Portland 
which route is recommended as the best and if not best 
the surest, that is I shall be certain to arrive at Wiscaset 

' As third attorney general of the State of Maine. This office he held 
during the term of Robert P. Dunlap as Governor, or until 1838. 



Representative and Attorney General 69 

when my business calls me there. I had a very uncomfort- 
able ride here. From Limerick to Hiram I rode in an open 
carriage. From Hiram to Fryeburg a good stage, where I 
staid till Monday, when I left in a two horse carriage, 8 
passengers and one team carried us to Paris over an ex- 
ceedingly rough country where all the roads are very 
improvidently bad ones, the highest points of land in many 
cases worse than May Towles mountain but generally 
strong and productive land and everything indicates a 
hardy race of intelligent yeomanry. I like the country. 
Aristocracy cannot live here. Wealth is equally divided 
and I venture the prediction that the sons of Oxford will 
always be Democrats. I am pleasantly situated at Mrs. 
Hardings an old lady, a widow, I presume. The court 
Hved here. Ask Elisha to see to my planting. Tell him 
to manage it prudently and I will help him as much. I 
want James to see to my two year old colts and not let 
them run in the meadow. I sat up last night till four 
o'clock in the morning to close my business having had 
good luck. My health is good. I equipped myself with 
medicine at Fryeburg. By the way I will not attempt to 
describe Fryeburg village in a letter but leave that till I 
come home. I heard an English clergyman last sabbath 
and rode in the stage with another. Learned much about 
old England. I did not pass through Bethel not within 
20 miles. Sent Sarah's letters by a Grand Jury [man] 
directly there. You will not be able to read this I fear but 
never mind you can pick it out. I guess you had better 
call the babie Hannah Francis ' or something else with the 
first name. I have a mind to call her Hannah but I will 
leave it to you and the rest of the folks. Be careful and 
not take cold. If you need any necessaries you may pur- 
chase them anywhere. I think Elisha will have to buy 

^ Born May 1 1, 1834. Married Philip Henry Brown of Portland. 



70 Life of Nathan Clifford 

your mother some meat & see to the planting of her po- 
tatoes I have written more than you can read till I write 

again. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



Bangor June 19 1834 

My Dear Wife 

A school boy would say ' ' I now take my pen in hand to 
inform you I am well and hope these few lines will find 
you the same" which is really all I have to say except that 
the court have this moment determined that Judge Wes- 
ton^ shall remain here next week to try the criminal 
Docket and of course I shall remain too. Judges Mellen^ 
and Parris^ will go to Washington next week and will there 
appoint someone probably the County Atty to fill my 
place. The criminal business here is very important so 
that the parties nor the court are willing I should leave. 
So you see I shall not go to Machias but shall meet the full 
court again at Castine. I shall direct Judge Parris to 
take my letters at Machias & bring them to me at Castine. 
I shall have Judge Weston for company & he is very kind. 
I want to see you very much ; never more in my life. The 
Mayor gives a great party this evening I am invited but 
shall not be able to go. Business before parties is my 
motto. Write at Castine next. These arrangements will 
change the time of my getting home. 

Nathan. 

» Nathan Weston, Justice Supreme Judicial Court, 1 820-1834 and 2d 
Chief Justice of the State of Maine. Maine Year Book, 1920-21, page 209. 

» Prentiss Mellen, First Chief Justice of Maine, 1 820-1 834. Maine Year 
Book, 1920-21, page 209. 

3 Albion K. Parris, Associate Justice of the Supreme Judical Court of 
Maine 1828-1836. U. S. Senate 1827-28. Maine Year Book, 1920-21, 
pages 209, 211. 



Representative and Attorney General 71 

Augusta Oct. 3, 1834 

My Dear Wife 

I shall remain here until week after next on Monday 
morning when I shall leave for Paris. My duties were 
light at Norridgewock and will not be very considerable 
here. One case of some importance in which Mr. Sprague 
defends. I am upon my oars until tuesday next. When 
idle the time hangs heavily. Shall expect to hear from you 
by Monday without fail. My portrait has been taken good 
care of I shall send it to Swetts if the Driver will carry it. 
My health is good. The complaint in my head does not 
trouble me much. I hope to be relieved from that ere 
long — I wash my head all over in cold water every morn- 
ing. How does your medicine agree with you. How are 
the children 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Belfast December 12 1834 

My Dear Wife 

Here I am sick at my room which is cold and uncom- 
fortable. I have taken a bad cold which is seated upon my 
lungs. Not able to eat or go to court. I have taken some 
medicine which I hope will relieve me and that I may be 
able to go into court certainly as soon as Monday & per- 
haps before. I do not think I am in any danger of a severe 
sickness though this morning I feared. I shall write to 
let you know how I am in season for you to get the letter. 

I think now I shall be at home Wednesday or Thursday 
& perhaps before but cannot say. We have snow here & 
sleighing tolerably good, stages run on runners. I got my 
money & paid Todd $1300 all but the interest which I 
shall pay on my return out of my salary 

Your affectionate husband 

Nathan Clifford 



72 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Machias June 21, 1835 

Hon Jabez Bradbury ' 
Dear Sir : 

I have not been furnished with the public Laws or 
Greenleaf's Reports. Will you please bring the matter 
before the Governor & Council. If my predecessors were 
furnished they have not delivered them over to me. The 
eighth volume of Green '1 I have received of the Secretary 
of State. I do not think I ought to be compelled to carry 
my own books all over the State when many sets are laying 
useless in the office at Augusta. 

Confidential 

Mr. Green "" will resign about this time. If Anderson ^ of 
Belfast wants the office he ought to have it. If not, per- 
haps you better delay making any appointment unless 
some good man is named. I have not heard of any one 
who ought to have it except Anderson 

Yours in haste 

Nathan Clifford 

Bangor Nov. 8 1835 

My Dear Wife 

I have not forgotten you though my mind for a few days 
past has been so intensely occupied in the discharge of my 
official duty that I have scarcely had time to call to recol- 
lection the fact that I had any family but now that the 
business is off my hands I feel anxious to get home — 
Saturday at the opening of the court I commenced my 
argument in close of the case Jane Spenser for the murder 
of Reuben M. Pitner and occupied the court & Jury till one 

* Member of Governor's Council, had been state legislator and senator. 
Died 1836, aged 43. 

' Roscoe G. Greene of Portland, Secretary of State of Maine. 

3 Hugh J. Anderson, Gov. of Maine, 1844. Member of 25th Congress, 
Jt837-26th Congress, 1839. 



Representative and Attorney General 7v3 

o'clock P.M. In the afternoon — Judge Emery & Weston 
charged the Jury seriatim, that is both charged. The Jury 
retired at 34 past five & at 8 o'clock returned a verdict of 
Guilty. Sentence will be passed on Monday morning at 
nine o'clock, When the Mayor of the city has tendered 
to Judge Emery and myself a seat in his Barouche with 
himself & wife to Dixmont 20 miles, Where we shall stay 
till Tuesday morning when we shall take the mail for 
Portland — So you see I shall not get to Portland till 
Tuesday night and in as much as the County Attorney 
will have to begin — I mean to get excused and come home 
if possible — But you must not get your expectations raised 
too high as I may not be so fortunate as I hope to be. But 
I will come if it is possible to do so without incurring 
blame — I cannot stop to give you any account of the trial 
but will do so when I am home — Hope to find you well 
and all five of our children — I am in good health — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Augusta March 5, 1836 

My Dear Wife 

I would not give one fig for your word ! You may have 
forgotten that you agreed to write me so that I might hear 
from Nancy on Sabbath last but as usual the Post Office 
is unfaithful. It is uncertain on what precise day I shall 
return. My prospects here are so good to attain the prin- 
cipal object of my visit ' that I do not wish to leave till it 
is disposed of lest the whole matter should be put in 
jeopardy. All of my friends advise me to stay. I am sure 
of success but to what extent I cannot say. Not less than 
two nor more than four increase which in a few years will 
be no small affair. I am well but rather straightened for 

' Apparently bill to increase salary of Atty. Gen., which failed of passage. 
Revised Statutes of Maine, Laws of Me. 



74 Life of Nathan Clifford 

dean close. Not your fault but mine, I did not expect to 
tarry half so long. There is nothing stirring here of im- 
portance. I have nothing to do but eat & sleep and smoke 
my cigar. I shall fail of seeing EHsha at home but hope 
he will call upon me here. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Castine June 26, 1837 

My Dear Wife 

It is perhaps unnecessary to write for it is quite prob- 
able I may be at home as soon as this will reach you, 
though there is yet a little uncertainty about the matter. 
The majority of the court, Reporter and myself arrived 
here on Saturday. The best information which can be 
obtained leads me to suppose that I shall be able to start 
for home tomorrow at twelve o'clock & if so I shall be 
with you thursday in the [? two words undecipherable] 
stage unless I conclude to go by the way of Augusta to 
secure the supplies belonging to the town in which event I 
may not arrive before Saturday. There is literally nothing 
to do here which is an irksome business always but more 
so at the close of a long absence from home and when one 
is very desirous of making what haste he can for it usually 
requires more time to do nothing than is necessary to ac- 
complish a good deal when properly prepared. Old mor- 
tality never visited a duller spot than this blessed retirement 
called Castine. It has been once or twice captured by the 
British and has as uniformly been abandoned by them vol- 
untarily. At the house where I board there is nothing 
but the "gabble" of the landlady from morn till eve which 
has as little music in it for me as the quackle of a flock of 
geese and it is about as incessant. The people here to-day 
look very cheerful every countenance wears a smile. It is 
because the sun shines which is a rare occurrence. I dare 



Representative and Attorney General 75 

say the place and people would seem more agreeable at 
a different time. This brings the close of the circuit with 
nothing to do & yet requiring as much time as if there 
was ever so much adds not a little to the association of 
unpleasant things. I am to cross the Bay in a small whale 
boat but it is said to be safe. If the wind blows I shall 
not venture. My courage upon the water is not worth 
boasting about provided I am to go so far from land that 
I cannot swim ashore ... I saw Paine at Bangor. He 
has not settled yet. If I come through Portland I shall 
purchase the children some caps and Bonnets. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Mr. Clifford had now arrived at the point in his career 
where his ambition called him to take part in national 
politics. The Senate of the United States was the office 
which appealed most to his imagination. After his experi- 
ences in the state legislature , he doubtless considered that he 
was able to conduct himself with credit in a position where 
readiness in debate was an asset, and the dignity of the Sen- 
atorial toga drew him on to hope for a success really beyond 
what was his due in point of age or service to his party. 

He became a candidate for nomination to the position of 
United States Senator in 1837. There was a vacancy 
then, owing to the resignation of Hon. Ether Shepley who 
had been named as Judge of the Supreme Judicial Court of 
Maine. Governor Dunlap in 1836 had appointed Judah 
Dana of Fryeburg ad interim till the meeting of the legis- 
lature in 1837. At this session Ruel Williams of Augusta 
was elected by 1 18 votes to 3 for Mr. Clifford, though Mr. 
Clifford had made a very respectable showing in the party 
caucus, receiving 49 votes. ' In view of the more recent 

'See files of Portland Argus, February 24, 1837; Portland Advertiser, 
February 23, 1837, Portland Argus, September 4, 1838. 



76 Life of Nathan Clifford 

custom of retaining Senators from Maine in office for long 
periods, it is interesting to speculate how far the future 
course of his life might have been changed had he been 
successful in his desire. In after years when his reputation 
as a great jurist was firmly estabHshed and universally 
admitted, it must have been a source of satisfaction to him 
to realize that the defeat of his youthful purpose had prob- 
ably but rendered him free to accept later the honor for 
which in his more mature life he showed himself most 
eminently qualified. 



CHAPTER IV 
Representative to Congress 

In the Congressional election of 1838, Mr. Clifford was 
elected over Nathan D. Appleton of Alfred, by a popular 
vote of 5,568 to 4,560. ' This was one of the most exciting 
political contests ever held in the State of Maine, and 
personal attacks were very freely made. As an example 
of the extent to which this sort of ammunition was used, 
reference may be made to the charge of bad faith against 
Mr. Clifford while he was seeking the attorney-generalship 
of the state in 1834. 

George W. Pierce^ of Portland and Mr. CHfford had both 
wished for this office. We have seen that Mr. Clifford 
v/as successful. For a time Mr. Pierce had been some- 
what put out by his defeat, his belief being that although 
]Mr. Clifford had promised not to be a candidate, he had 
later broken his word and entered the race. 

This accusation was first publicly brought in 1 836, when 
Mr. Clifford began to have aspirations for the United 
States Senate, by F. O. J. Smith of Portland, who was a 
rival candidate, and in whom, previously, Mr. Clifford had 
reposed both confidence and friendship. Its failure was 
manifested by the result of the balloting in the Democratic 
Party caucus in which Mr. Clifford received more than 
double the votes accorded to Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith evi- 
dently allowed his defeat to turn his former regard for Mr. 

' Argus, Portland, September ii, 1838. 

* See files of York County Herald, and especially issues of August 1 1 , 
August 18, September i, 1838, September 12, 1840. 

77 



78 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Clifford into direct dislike, and again renewed the attack 
upon him in the Congressional campaign of 1838. As has 
been shown Mr. Smith was not running against Mr. 
Clifford and was in fact in Europe, though he had been 
nominated for Governor by the so-called conservatives 
against Governor Kent, Whig, and John Fairfield, Demo- 
crat. ' 

When the matter was first brought to Mr. Clifford's 
notice, Mr. Pierce having died in the meantime, he wrote 
letters to the persons who, he was aware, had a personal 
knowledge of the questions in dispute. Copies of some of 
these communications are here given as an indication of 
the direct method taken by Mr. Clifford in answering a 
slur upon his honor. 

Newfield December 9 1836 

Hon JosiAH Pierce 
Dear Sir 

I have recently been accused of dishonorable conduct 
while a candidate for the office of Atty Gen during the 
session of 1834 in relation to your brother the late George 
W. Pierce Esquire. As you were a member of the legisla- 
ture at the time & have an intimate knowledge of all that 
transpired during the pendency of that question I wish 
you to state whether any conduct of mine within your 
knowledge — can furnish any ground for such a charge. I 
know your brother was somewhat dissatisfied at the time 
but as I was induced to believe his subsequent reflections 
effaced any degree of unkindness from his mind. His 
letter to me asking my humble aid in procuring the ap- 
pointment of Reporter satisfied me upon this point. If 
I am not mistaken you were of the opinion that I ought to 
be appointed though you did not feel at liberty to take my 

I Hatch, History of Maine, vol. i., pages 231-232, also Argus, August 14, 
September 3, 4, and 11, 1838. 



Representative to Congress 79 

part. As this is matter bearing upon my private character 
I appeal to your sense of justice for a full statement of 
facts according to your best recollections. Your lamented 
Bro. is not here to do me justice but I feel that I may safely 
call upon you as his proper representative — 

Your friend & Humble Svt 

Nathan Clifford 

A similar note was sent to Ex-Governor Dunlap. 

The next letter is quoted because it shows Mr. Clifford's 
willingness to submit to the judgment of a person present 
at the interview, the exact nature of his agreement with 
Mr. Pierce. It should also be noted that the addressee 
was a supporter of F. O. J. Smith for Governor. 

Portland, December lo, 1836 

Albert Smith Esq — 
Dear Sir. 

I have recently been accused of dishonorable conduct 
while a candidate for the office of Attorney General during 
the session of 1834 ^^ relation to the late George W. 
Pierce, Esquire. As you were present at an interview 
between Mr. Pierce & myself a short time before the com- 
mencement of that session where our relation to each 
other as candidates was talked over I wish you to state the 
result of that conversation. I think you were at Augusta 
a part of the session & know much that took place in rela- 
tion to that appointment. Will you say whether any con- 
duct of mine within your knowledge furnishes any ground 
for such a charge. 

Yours respectfully 

Nathan Clifford 

No answers to this correspondence have been found 
among Mr. Clifford's papers. Whatever the replies may 



8o Life of Nathan Clifford 

have been, Mr. George W. Pierce evidently had been satis- 
fied by Mr. Clifford's explanation, and had applied to him 
for the latter's assistance in obtaining the office of Reporter 
of Decisions. The Daily Eastern Argus of September 4, 
1838, printed a copy of a letter from Mr. Pierce to Mr. 
Clifford, dated January 5, 1835. 

Portland, January 5, 1835 

Bro. Clifford — My letters from every quarter — even 
some from Kennebec come in gloriously. Now will you give 
me one to the Governor containing your good word on the 
matter of Reporter. The three judges and old reporter are 
for me, and the Attorney General is necessary. / write this 
friendly and familiarly because I believe your good wishes are 
with me. Even Rogers has written me God speed. Will you, 
therefore, send me a letter to the Governor, saying my ap- 
pointment will be, etc, etc, to you. Do write me what is the 
prospect of Maj. Haines Court bill. 

Truly yours, 

Geo. W. Pierce 

It is evident from the above that all enmity on the part 
of Mr. Pierce toward Mr. Clifford had been removed before 
the death of the former. Probably the matter would never 
have received any serious consideration had it not been for 
the fact that at this time Mr. Smith published extracts 
from certain letters written him by Mr. Clifford and Mr. 
Pierce. The whole correspondence was not printed, and 
the parts so given to the public were of a character to 
damage the reputation and standing of Mr. Clifford, had 
they been believed. 

The Argus of this period is very condemnatory of Mr. 
Smith in this transaction. It accuses him first of attempt- 
ing to play falsely the part of friend and counsellor of both 
Mr. Clifford and Mr. Pierce and later of proving untrue to 
the obligations of friendship by a total disregard of the 



Representative to Congress 8i 

sacredness of private correspondence. However this may 
be, it is certain that as between Mr. Pierce and Mr. 
Clifford the whole matter was but a temporary misunder- 
standing which was later cleared away to the absolute 
satisfaction of both. Also the charge against Mr. Clifford 
seems to have had no effect upon the regard in which he 
was held by all his friends. 

Mr. Clifford first took his seat in Congress in December, 
1839.' His colleagues from Maine in the House were 
George Evans of Gardiner, Thomas Davee of Blanchard, 
Hugh J. Anderson of Belfast, Albert Smith of Portland, 
Benjamin Randall of Bath, Virgil D. Parris of Buckfield 
and Joshua A. Lowell of East Machias. All were Demo- 
crats except Mr. Evans and Mr. Randall who were Whigs. ^ 

Methods of travel had changed since Mr. Clifford was a 
delegate to the Democratic convention in Baltimore in 
1832. The American railways had begun to extend their 
connecting network over the eastern part of the country. 

Tremont House Boston Wednesday 
Nov 20 — 

My Dear Wife. 

I was detained at Saco until monday morning & conse- 
quently did not arrive in this City until monday eve at 
8 o'clock. I leave tomorrow afternoon in the 4 oclock train 
of cars for Providence having determined to go by the way 
of Stonington Ct to New York. Mr. Lowell & lady take 
the Worcester track to N-Y consequently they will fall 
behind me unless I tarry in N-Y — The Mass. delegation 
do not start until Saturday. I have concluded not to pur- 
chase a cloak the weather being rather comfortable — 
Albert Smith & family passed here yesterday — His family 
will remain in Massts. Caleb ^ need not attend to my Bank 

' Maine Year Book, Biographical Cong. Direct., pages 127, 128. 
^Biographical Cong. Direct., pages 522, 758. 
3 Caleb R. Ayer, brother of Mrs. CliflFord. 
6 



82 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Note — it is arranged — He may charge White & Maxwell 
$20.00 & give me credit for $i.oo for incidentals. They 
settled Board Bill — I am well. 

Yours truly, 

Nathan Clifford 

Mr. Clifford had chosen a stormy period of our history 
in which to make his debut into Washington politics. He 
was not unmindful of the necessity of keeping his communi- 
cations with his base well guarded. 

Washington City. Jany. 22, 1840 — 

Barnabas Palmer Esq. 
Dear Sir : 
Your letter has been duly received. I am obliged & 
hope the favour will often be repeated. I shall always be 
pleased to hear from you upon any subject. Thus far I 
feel constrained to admit that you have reason to regard 
me as neglectful on the score of correspondence but hope 
you will pardon me when I assure you I have not been idle 
but have been laboriously engaged in the honest endeavour 
to qualify myself to participate with some hope of success, 
in the deliberations of Congress, I mean beyond a mere 
silent vote which has been too much the case of representa- 
tives from our State — Maine is entitled to her full share 
of influence here — but she cannot have it if her members 
surrender up the right of debate to the other states — A 
member may command great personal respect without 
entering into debate but it seems to me impossible that he 
can have the influence to which his state is entitled without 
meeting the bullies of the south and west upon the floor. 
I speak of a state whose voice is not heard at all — For 
m}?- own part my mind is made up, I will try and God 
being my helper I will succeed — Leaving all conse- 
quences behind me, neither threats nor bullying shall deter 



Representative to Congress 83 

me, I will let them know that blows are to be taken as 
well as given — I allude to this not by the way of boast 
but by way of excuse for an apparent neglect — I am not 
unmindful of your — friendship or of its value — & hope I 
shall always be able to deserve it — In a few days I will 
send you my first effort — The Glohe is publishing it in 
pamphlet . My friends here including the first officers of the 
government speak kindly of my beginning — for that I am 
thankful & will endeavor to improve next time — I assure 
you my constituents shall not be neglected for to them I 
owe everything & it is their interests & rights which I am 
sent here to sustain. I have thought this explanation due 

to an old & tried friend 

We are still engaged upon abolition & with little prospect 
of immediate disposal. Thus far every effort to agree upon 
a proposition in reference to it has failed — It is the object 
of the opposition to make up the issue upon this question 
in the Presidential campaign. Consequently the whigs of 
the [torn] & south occupy extremes for the very purpose 
of keeping the subject open & how long the public business 
is to be delayed by it I cannot tell — The South Carolina 
& Georgia delegations I hear are talking of leaving Con- 
gress. I think we may be able to devise some way of 
getting rid of it but really at present I see none — Mr. 
Adams is now making a most inflammatory speech. When 
he sits down we shall hear from the other side — Write 
often 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City March 26 1840 

My Dear Wife 

I received your kind invitation to come home & should 
be very glad to do so if my duty would permit & will come 
if possible but fear I cannot — Mr. Adams has intro- 



84 Life of Nathan Clifford 

duced a resolution against "pairing off" as it is called 
which has not been acted on — ' ' Pairing off " is where two 
members of opposite politicks agree to absent themselves 
for a certain number of days — You may well suppose I 
should be glad to see you but I fear attack while our bound- 
ary affair remains in so critical & uncertain a position. My 
colleagues will not consent for me to leave now — I am 
quite well considering that I have had no sleep for two 
nights of any consequence. The session continued all 
night Wednesday. You will see it in the Globe which I 
sent you today — If you do not see the Globe write me 
& I will send it. You will see I have spoken frequently 
though I have not made but one set speech. None but 
set speeches are reported at length. It is a tiresome life 
to stay here but I like the business of legislation. I am 
glad to hear that William Henry ' is better. Enclosed some 
Beans. The Beet seed is from France — (Sugar Beet) 
If I do not come I shall send my small trunk by Mr. An- 
derson to Portland and he will send it up by stage — I will 
send the key by mail to you — I cannot write more after 
sitting 29 hours without food or sleep. I do not feel like 
writing. You must not [think] I do not wish to come home 
for I assure you I am as anxious to come home as you can 
be but it will not do for me to sacrifice my standing by 
leaving at this critical moment & I fear I shall be delayed 
until the Sub-Treasury Bill comes up & then every man 
must remain at his post. Upon that we are to have a full 
discussion in the House where it has not been much con- 
sidered in years past — Upon that question I desire to 
speak if possible as no one from Maine has ever spoken upon 
it — Write as often as you can. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

' William Henry Clifford, Esq., 3rd son of Judge Clifford. Editor of his 
father's decisions as Circuit Judge. 



Representative to Congress 85 

Washington City April 28, 1840 

My Dear Wife 

The mail has just arrived and brings no news from you 
or from any one at home — so I thought I would write a few 
words by the way of returning "good for evil" or attention 
for neglect — I am willing to admit that it belongs to me 
to write more frequently than you do and I do not mean 
to find much fault but hope you will write as often as 
possible — We are making slow progress here. Monday 
& tuesday our session continued more than thirty hours — 
I was present the whole time without repose or refresh- 
ment — though the reporter of the Globe by mistake has 
reported me at the head of the list which was taken into 
custody by the sergeant at arms & brought into the House 
& compelled to pay fines — This morning I corrected the 
error in a few minutes in the House & the reporter will 
make the correction in the Globe It was a vexatious mis- 
take after sitting up all night & two days to be reported 
absent — How many shirts did I have when I left & how 
many sound collars — We have had some very warm 
weather — The gardner of the public grounds has mowed 
the grass in front of the capitol — In the fields the grass 
is more backward — I find my room very warm & too 
small for summer — . I shall be glad when Anderson comes 
back he is company when the House is not in session — I 
expect we shall sit till midnight almost every night till the 
session closes — so that all the spare time I have is from 
breakfast time till 12 o'clock & almost half the time I am 
on committee — If a member here attends to his duty in 
a manner to gain any credit he has no time to rove about & 
if he does rove about he cannot have any credit — I state 
these things to let you know how my time is spent — most 
of my letters to you are written during the session of 
the House when some one is speaking that I do not 



86 Life of Nathan Clifford 

desire to listen to — I should like to be at home a 
few days — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Although certain portions of the country were beginning 
to be connected by railroads and communication in the 
eastern part was somewhat easier, still one of the greatest 
problems presented to the legislators was how to make 
more ready the access to the frontier settlements, which 
were every day creeping further west of the AUeghanies. 

The need of proper post roads and canals, and later 
railroads to these outlying districts had raised the question 
where the money to build them was to be procured. The 
state governments had, in many cases, embarked upon 
programs of extravagant appropriations for all sorts of 
highway construction which had resulted in an inability 
to meet maturing obligations. Speculation had been very 
active and labor and capital withdrawn from agriculture 
and locked up in transportation. Credit had been ex- 
tended abnormally with the result that the bubble had 
burst in 1837.' Banks had suspended specie payments. 
By a system of high duties on imports it might be possible 
to create a surplus revenue so that the Federal Govern- 
ment could afford to assume the state debts and thus 
directly or indirectly pay for these so-called internal im- 
provements. The same result might be accomplished by 
a distribution of the proceeds of the sale of public land 
among the different states. 

The Democratic party had always been against a high 
tariff. They were also opposed to the paying of sums out 
of the Federal Treasury to defray the cost of purely local 

' Martin Van Buren, Am. Statesmen Series, pages 308-9. Andrew Jack- 
son, same series, page 378. McMaster, vol. vii., page 24 et seq. Von Hoist, 
vol. ii., page 173. 



Representative to Congress §7 

work. They based their position on their accustomed 
plank of strict construction. They maintained that the 
Central Government was one of only limited powers, and 
all rights not expressly granted to it were reserved to the 
states. Inasmuch as there was no specific authority to 
the former to undertake to finance special enterprises with- 
in the limits of any of the latter, it had no such right. As 
the debate upon these matters would naturally arise when 
an appropriation bill was presented for passage, it is not 
surprising to find that the first important speech of Mr. 
Clifford reported in the Congressional Globe is on this 
subject. 

While one may consider that the early part of the ad- 
dress has very little bearing upon the question at issue, it is 
still important as illustrating Mr, Clifford's method of 
attacking any problem. As has been said before his mind 
was not of the brilliant type. He did not have the ability 
in a comparatively few words to set forth an idea teeming 
with suggestiveness and originality. However, he was 
complete master of any subject upon which he chose to 
write or speak, for the reason that he made himself famil- 
iar with every side of it. In consequence, when he wished 
to express an idea he took the same road as he had used in 
acquiring his own information. He began at the begin- 
ning, and marched by careful stages through every possible 
phase or contingency. The result was that when he arrived 
at his conclusion, there was no point which had not been 
covered. This was true of all his opinions after he be- 
came Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. 
A large part of Mr. Clifford's remarks are here quoted 
simply to convey a correct impression of the young Con- 
gressman's ideas upon the political questions of the day 
as well as his views on past events, as showing his reasons 
for the allegiance to the party of his choice. 

Let the reader bear in mind that these are the words of 



88 Life of Nathan Clifford 

a man who had educated himself to a large degree. That 
in evolving his theories of the Constitution and the his- 
tory of the formation of parties, Mr. Clifford had not had 
the benefit of the views of a highly trained college profes- 
sor who in turn had been taught by one whose ideas had 
been tested in the crucible of long analytical and scientific 
research. When these facts are considered together with 
the speaker's age 37, it must be admitted that the 
production merits high praise. 

After an introduction containing references to certain of 
his colleagues in the House, and a statement that the 
Federal party during the last war with Great Britain, had 
been guilty of efforts to excite the people of New England 
to open rebellion and resistance to the Federal Govern- 
ment, and had actually plotted a dissolution of the Union 
and establishment of a northern confederacy under the 
auspices of the British protection, he began with a history 
of the foundation of political parties in this country. 

Mr. Clifford said ^: 

"The first organization of parties took place during 
the latter part of General Washington's administration. '. . . 

"In their origin, these differences of opinion involved 
nearly opposite views as to the model and form of govern- 
ment which the exigencies of the time demanded, with re- 
ference to its operation upon the frame and structure of 
society, and its tendency to promote the individual happi- 
ness and prosperity of the people, and at the same time, 
to afford sufficient strength and efficiency to insure domes- 
tic tranquility and to provide for the common defense. 
The natural tendency of these conflicting views after the 
adoption of the Constitution, led their respective adher- 
ents to widely different rules of interpretation of the instru- 
ment itself in the application of it to the purposes for which 

' See Report of Speech in Congressional Globe, vol. viii., page 471. 



Representative to Congress 89 

it had been formed. This gave rise to party organization, 
which, with slight modifications and occasional interrup- 
tions, has continued to this day. . . . 

"... the master spirit and father of Federalism, Alex- 
ander Hamilton, was strongly inclined to the British 
system of government. . . . He distrusted the capacity of 
the people for self-government. . . . 

" ... It is impossible to misunderstand the scope and 
bearing of his remarks against the weakness and instabil- 
ity of Republican institutions. . . . While it is no part 
of my intention to derogate in the slightest degree from 
the merits of the honorable dead, I beg leave to say . . . that 
the sentiments so freely advanced by Hamilton are known 
to have been entertained ... by very many of the leaders 
of the Federal party at the period of the adoption of the 
Constitution ; and that they were openly acknowledged by 
the more honest and candid until their defeat, in 1800, in 
the election of Mr. Jefferson. . . . 

"It is a well-known fact that needs no confirmation 
that the present Constitution was more the result of com- 
promise, induced by the exigencies of the country at the 
period of its formation, . . . , than the exponent of the 
views of either of the two parties that were represented in 
that Convention. The mass of the people felt deeply the 
imperfections of the Articles of Confederation, and ar- 
dently wished for such alterations as would relieve them of 
the evils which they had experienced in consequence of 
them ; but there was a wide diversity of opinion as to the 
character of alterations necessary to be made to attain 
that object. On the 17th of September, 1787, the present 
draft was agreed to. . . . Immediately after its pub- 
lication it was submitted by Congress to the several 
States for ratification. ... It is true that many of 
the Republicans opposed it, not because they were averse 
to a more perfect union of the States for certain specified 



90 Life of Nathan Clifford 

purposes — to regulate the commerce of the country and to 
insure the common defense — but because, in some re- 
spects, its internal powers were more ample, and in others 
less cautiously restricted, as they believed, than were con- 
sistent with the sovereignty of the States or the liberty 
of the people. They were jealous of the extent of power 
conferred upon the Executive, as conceding too much to 
the known partialities of their opponents, and they criti- 
cised with great severity the omission to provide a bill of 
rights for the security of the citizen .... 

" It is undeniably true that some of the features of the 
instrument which most excited the fears and jealousy of 
those that desired as far as possible to preserve the author- 
ity of the States afforded the strongest inducements to 
their opponents to espouse its adoption, which they did for 
the reasons assigned, as well as from the conviction arising 
from the fact, then made evident in the discussion that 
immediately followed its publication, that no nearer ap- 
proach to that system of national power to which all their 
efforts had been directed with earnest solicitude could ever 
receive the sanction of the mass of the people. The de- 
velopment of public sentiment on this point was so clear 
that the most barefaced advocates of monarchy yielded 
to the demonstrations of the voice of the people, and ad- 
vocated the adoption of the Constitution. . . . 

"The vagrant power to incorporate, which has so many 
advocates at this time in the ranks of the Opposition, 
though scarcely any two of them can agree upon its local- 
ity, was directly and solemnly refused a place in the Con- 
stitution. It was several times considered in one form or 
another but as often as it was proposed it was promptly 
voted down by a large majority of the States. The reasons 
assigned for the refusal were that the people in certain 
portions of the Confederacy were averse to a national 
bank, and if the power to incorporate should be recom- 



Representative to Congress 91 

mended it would obviously include the right to charter a 
bank, and that this would present an obstacle of a very 
dangerous character to the consummation of the general 
design. . . . The people never dreamed, during the dis- 
cussion that ensued, that any such power would be found 
lurking in the provisions of the instrument they were called 
upon to sanction by their suffrages. But no sooner was it 
adopted than the Federal party true to their original 
design, claimed it by construction. The Democratic 
party denied it, and they deny it still. The opponents of 
this Administration, by whatever name they choose to 
call themselves, affirm it. This was the great point of di- 
vision when party organization, in its more extended sense 
took place at the close of General Washington's adminis- 
tration with reference to the selection of his successors, 

"The objects of parties underwent no change, but the 
system of operation was necessarily varied to the altered 
circumstances with which they were surrounded. All 
acquiesced in the new Constitution, but their principles 
remained the same as before its adoption. It now became 
necessary to fix its interpretation. Here they divided. 
The one party desired to confine its application to the 
specified objects for which it had been created ; the other 
was equally solicitous to extend its provisions by implica- 
tion, and to embrace the objects which they believed ought 
to have been included among its enumerated powers. The 
ostensible object of the latter, so far as any avowal of their 
intention was made, was to include the power to incorpor- 
ate, with the view to the establishment of a national 
bank. . . . 

"... The struggle that ensued it must be admitted 
on all sides, was one for principle. The Bank, or Federal 
party, supported the elder Adams for reasons which I have 
before stated. The Democratic party supported Mr. 
Jefferson. The former succeeded by a majority of three 



92 Life of Nathan Clifford 

votes. That administration has been emphatically de- 
nominated 'the reign of terror.' The alien and sedition 
laws were among the tyrannical measures which served 
to awaken the people to a sense of the danger with which 
they were surrounded. The liberty of speech and the 
press was invaded under the pretense of affording pro- 
tection to public officers against the strictures of party and 
the prevalent disposition to slander and decry the Govern- 
ment ; rights heretofore held sacred were forgotten, like the 
dreams of the night, in the shameless prosecutions for 
alleged violations of this 'gag law,' and the most open and 
barefaced infractions of the social compact were perpe- 
trated with impunity, until 'all confidence was lost in the 
midst of fear and apprehension.' 

" . . . In 1800, the success of the Democratic party 
was complete. The voice of the people triumphed over 
the slanders and falsehoods which had been heaped upon 
the candidate of their choice. Thomas Jefferson was 
elected President. ... 

"This glorious event was hailed with great joy by the 
friends of equal rights in all parts of the country as the 
harbinger of better days ; and no one ever had occasion to 
say that his most sanguine expectations were not fully real- 
ized in the radical change of policy that ensued. The 
schemes for undermining the constitution were defeated, 
and the Government restored to its primitive purity. . . . 

"The conduct of England toward the United States had 
been one uninterrupted course of aggression and violation 
of national faith. Jealousy and ill-will were the predomi- 
nant features of her policy. She had on many occasions, 
and in the grossest manner, violated the treaty of peace. 
She had declined a treaty of commerce ; she had impressed 
our seamen ; she had instigated the savage tribes to toma- 
hawk and scalp American citizens ; she had stimulated the 
mercenary and piratical of all nations to prey upon our 



Representative to Congress 93 

unprotected commerce; and, in a word, 'she had insulted 
our flag, and pillaged our trade in every quarter of the 
world.' 

" . . . These measures were destructive to the rights 
and interests of the United States, and especially to the 
commercial class, who were in a great measure driven 
from the ocean and a lucrative trade, for no other purpose 
than to administer to the cupidity and malice of the 'mis- 
tress of the sea ' ; and yet, strange as it may seem, many 
concurred in the general design, while at the same time they 
called loudly upon their own Government to relieve them 
from the embarrassments which it produced. Parties were 
divided as to the causes of their distress ; but all demanded 
redress, and condemned the aggressions, and none were 
more clamorous than the very men that subsequently 
opposed every effort of the Government in the most trea- 
sonable manner, to rescue our national interests from the 
ruin which must have ensued if no counteracting remedies 
had been adopted. . . , 

"... On the 226. of June, 1807, the wanton at- 
tack was made on the Chesapeake by the Leopard, in 
consequence of the refusal of Commodore Barron to sub- 
mit to the claimed right of search, and to deliver up four 
sailors on board the former in pursuance of the iniquitous 
demand of the British officer. This raised the excitement 
to the highest pitch of indignation. All parties alike, the 
Federalists, as much as the Democrats, clamored for repara- 
tion, with just abhorrence of the insult offered to our 
national flag. 

"The excitement was so great it was deemed impolitic 
and unwise to convene Congress until sufficient time had 
elapsed for reflection, and for the resentments of the public 
mind to subside. In the meantime, to quiet the alarm 
which very generally prevailed, and to protect the interests 
and honor of the country from a repetition of such flagrant 



94 Life of Nathan Clifford 

procedure within our own jurisdiction, the President is- 
sued the proclamation of the 2d of July, forbidding British 
vessels-of-war, in certain cases and under certain limita- 
tions, to enter or remain in the ports or harbors of the 
United States. This was a mere precautionary step to 
guard against similar outrages until Congress could be 
convened. The whole subject of our relations with Great 
Britain was submitted to Congress at the extra session on 
the twenty-sixth of October, following. The embargo 
became a law on the 226. of December, 1807. No man 
dared risk his veracity or his intelligence by affirming that 
this measure was not adopted to meet the complaints of 
the Federal merchants, and to prepare the way for a 
redress of their grievances so vividly set forth in their 
memorials. . . . 

"After they had formerly resolved 'that the suffering 
armed vessels to station themselves off our harbors, and 
there to stop, search, and capture our vessels, to impress, 
wound, and murder our citizens, is a gross and criminal 
neglect of the highest duties of Government, and that an 
Administration that patiently permits the same is not en- 
titled to the confidence of the people,' when that Adminis- 
tration, in the mildest manner possible, attempted to seek 
redress of the very wrongs which they had so feelingly por- 
trayed, the leaders of the Federal party, in spite of their 
boasted patriotism, turned round and denounced the 
Administration which they had just before reproached for 
its supineness, and, in the violence of their opposition 
actually coalesced with the common foe to defeat and 
paralyze every effort to redress the same grievances of 
which they had complained. . . . 

"It has already appeared that Mr. Jefferson and his 
party were obliged to abandon the embargo to save the 
Union from the treasonable designs of the Federal party 
in the eastern States. Non-intercourse was substituted on 



Representative to Congress 95 

the 1st of March, 1809. This act met with little or no 
better reception. It was at once denounced as having been 
dictated by French influence, and as a measure of hostility 
to England. The cry of French influence and southern 
influence was the principal weapon of Federal war- 
fare in the North throughout the period of which I am 
speaking. . . . 

"It soon became evident that hostilities must ensue, as 
all peaceful efforts to obtain justice had been exhausted 
without any success. All parties again demanded redress, 
and none were more clamorous than those that subse- 
quently opposed the war with so much violence and ran- 
cor. . . . The Federal party in Massachusetts were 
more rancorous and uncharitable in their opposition than 
in any State in the Union. They declared, in the form of a 
legislative declaration, that 'the war was founded in 
falsehood, declared without necessity, and its real object 
was extent of territory by unjust conquests, and 
to aid the late tyrant of Europe in his view of aggran- 
dizement. . . . ' 

"They withheld, as far as it was within their power, the 
means for supporting the Army and Navy ; they discour- 
aged enlistments; they prevented loans, and actually de- 
vised a regular system for exporting specie out of the 
country to cripple the Government by depriving it of the 
sinews of war ; and when victory crowned the efforts of the 
brave, they resolved that 'it was unbecoming a moral and 
religious people to express an approbation of military or 
naval exploits.' This relentless and heartless opposition 
was kept up with unabated fury down to the victory at 
New Orleans and the subsequent news of the treaty of 
peace. Peace was concluded on the 24th day of Decem- 
ber, 1 81 4, but the news did not reach this country until 
after the battle at New Orleans. The Hartford Conven- 
tion assembled on the 15th December, 1 8 14, and adjourned 



96 Life of Nathan Clifford 

to meet at Boston in the following June, which meeting 
never took place, but was turned over ' to the receptacle of 
things lost upon earth.' The victory of New Orleans and 
the treaty of peace made the triumph of the Democratic 
party complete. No language can describe their joy. The 
Federalists were overwhelmed, as well by the successful 
termination of the conflict, as by the knowledge of 
the odium which it attached to their treasonable 
opposition. . . . 

"The next eight years succeeding the war have been 
called the 'era of good feeling,' during which the Federal 
party endeavored to wipe off, by every species of obsequi- 
ousness, the disgrace of their past misdeeds, without any 
change of their cherished principles. Party organization 
was abandoned, and of course the animosity of feeling 
which had long prevailed subsided. These 'no-party 
times, ' as they have been called, continued, at least in New 
England, until the election of John Q. Adams by the 
House of Representatives. . . . The old party feeling 
was aroused to a very high degree of excitement at the 
ensuing presidential election ; the mass of the Democratic 
party were embodied again under the banner of JefTerso- 
nian principles, in opposition to an Administration which 
commanded the confidence and respect of the tariff and 
bank party in every quarter of the Union. . . . 

"I can speak with the utmost confidence when I say 
that within the limit of my own acquaintance it is an un- 
deniable fact that the masses of the old Republicans then 
living were the warm and zealous supporters of the 
second election of President Jackson, and continued 
throughout to approve of the principles and measures of 
his administration, the distinctive features of which were 
a strict construction of the Constitution, opposition to a 
national bank, the reduction of the tariff and the receipts 
of the Treasury, as far as possible, without injury to the 



Representative to Congress 97 

great interests of the country, to the wants of the Govern- 
ment upon the strictest principles of accountabiHty and 
economy, and an undeviating hostiHty to constitutional 
appropriations upon local objects of improvement. That 
the Federal party opposed this Administration, its prin- 
ciples and policy, with unrelenting and uncompromising 
hostility, is susceptible of the clearest demonstration, if 
the fact does not stand confessed. . . . 

"The additional fact that I wish to establish I presume 
no one will deny, and therefore does not require proof, but 
may be fairly assumed ; and it is, that the supporters, prin- 
ciples, and policy of the present Administration are identi- 
cal with the one that preceded it. It may be said that it 
is in contemplation to substitute the Independent Treas- 
ury system for the collection, safe-keeping, and disburse- 
ment of the public monej'-, in the place of the State banks; 
but this does not afford the distinction required. The State 
banks were selected as an experiment. It has signally 
failed through the misconduct and bad faith of the banks 
themselves ; and it is well known that after the suspension 
of specie payments in 1837, and the refusal of the banks to 
pay over nearly thirty millions of the public money, which 
had been collected from the people, and deposited with 
the banks for safe-keeping, General Jackson, no less than 
Mr. Van Buren, became satisfied that no further confi- 
dence could be reposed in them as depositories of the public 
treasure, and both alike approved of the new recommenda- 
tion that was made, and which, I trust, before this session 
terminates, will become the law of the land. ' One accusa- 
tion of the Opposition is, therefore, fully sustained, and 
will be cheerfully admitted ; that Mr. Van Buren is 'tread- 
ing in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessor.' I hope 

' Sub-Treasury bill was passed at this session. It was bitterly opposed 
by the Whigs, but is probably the greatest achievement of Van Buren's 
Administration, 



98 Life of Nathan Clifford 

gentlemen will not back out of this charge because it may 
be convenient to do so to avoid the consequences of an 
issue they wish to escape. . . . 

"The principles of parties at the present time will now 
be considered with a little more particularity, but with as 
much brevity as possible. It has already appeared that, 
throughout the period of party organization, they have 
been separated by an impassable gulf in their views and 
feelings upon the construction of the Constitution. In the 
progress of events other questions temporary in their na- 
ture have largely contributed to the bitterness and acri- 
mony of party strife, which at times has threatened the 
existence of the Union itself ; but as these temporary causes 
of irritation pass away, parties are seen to settle down 
upon the standard of principle upon which the division 
first took place. Such is the case at the present time, in 
spite of all the efforts in certain quarters to conceal it. 
The present contest is one for principle, and its dividing 
line is bottomed upon the construction of the Constitution 
as leading to different measures of policy in the adminis- 
tration of public affairs. . . . 

"The soundest principles of economy, as well as of 
justice, are opposed to a high tariff. It is a perversion of 
the taxing power which was confided in Congress by the 
Constitution for the purpose of providing for the general 
welfare of the whole Union, and not for the benefit of the 
few individuals at the expense of the many. Any system, 
therefore, which imposes burdens upon the body of the 
people to confer favor upon a limited class of individuals or 
corporations is a perversion and infraction of the grant to 
lay taxes, because it is not to provide for the general wel- 
fare of the whole, but to administer to the cupidity and 
avarice of the few; and, therefore, any exaction for the 
sole benefit of one branch of industry, at the expense of 
all others, is a germ of Federal construction not authorized 



Representative to Congress 99 

by the Constitution, the whole tendency of which is to 
pervert our republican institutions from a state of purity 
and simplicity into a splendid system of national power, in 
subversion of the rights of the States and of the liberties of 
the people. A strict constitutional limitation of the taxing 
power is the only safeguard against corruption and extrava- 
gance. Hence the sleepless vigilance of the Democratic 
party in their opposition to an unauthorized tariff. The 
aim and objects of its projectors will be hinted at hereafter. 
Again : no one pretends that there is any express grant to 
authorize the appropriation of national treasure upon local 
objects of improvement. This, too, is based upon construc- 
tion, and is claimed by implication. The Democratic 
party oppose it upon constitutional grounds, as well as 
on account of the injustice and inequality of its operation 
upon the different sections of the Union. It is a gambHng, 
log-roUing system, calculated to corrupt the deliberations 
of Congress, and to foster divisions and heart-burnings 
among the several States of the Confederacy. 

"On this point I desire to be distinctly understood. It 
is not the danger of exasperation of sectional feeling that 
constitutes the essential ground of the opposition of the 
Democratic party to this system, for that has reference to 
its expediency; but it is regarded as the exercise of an 
unauthorized power, contravening the Constitution and 
infringing upon the sovereignty of the States. There are 
very strong objections to it on the score of expediency. 
In addition to what has been said, it leads to unnecessary 
and exorbitant taxation, by creating new objects of appro- 
priation, without number or bound, except in the discre- 
tion of Congress. It has been called the sluiceway of the 
tariff system, and I do not know of a more appropriate 
name. The friends of the tariff have uniformly supported 
it, for the reason, undoubtedly, that the drain from the 
Treasury, which it occasions, would further their designs. 



100 Life of Nathan Clifford 

In all its consequences it is productive of evil, without any 
counterbalan cing goo d . Again : the power to collect money 
to any amount from the people, and distributing it as a 
matter of favor to the States, or to corporations, is a spe- 
cies of despotism of the most odious character. The pro- 
jected scheme of distribution finds no favor with the 
Democratic party. They have resisted it, and will con- 
tinue to resist it, in any and every shape and form in 
which it may be presented, whether under the pretense of 
donation or under the disguise of the assumption of the 
State debts. 

"The policy to be pursued in relation to the public do- 
main demands the most solemn consideration of the com- 
munity and is likely to excite very much of public atten- 
tion for many years to come, both on account of its bear- 
ing upon the finances of the country and the principles 
involved in the various schemes that have been projected 
to divert the accruing profit of the annual sales from the 
national Treasury. The distribution system is the most 
formidable and the most dangerous of any that has been 
presented, on account of the bait which it offers to the 
indebted United States, no less than to the manufacturers 
who see that if it prevails it must lay the foundation for a 
very great increase of taxation, and contribute very largely 
to their interests and designs. The mode of collecting, 
keeping, and disbursing the public money is an important 
feature in every system of national policy. Taxes must be 
levied in some way, and, to a greater or less extent, in all 
Governments ; and the money must be collected and dis- 
bursed in one currency or another. The policy of the 
Democratic party in this behalf is well known, though it 
has been shamefully misrepresented in all its objects and 
effects. ^ It is true that Government dues will be prospec- 
tively collected in gold and silver, and that the payments 

' See Jackson's specie letter. 



Representative to Congress loi 

to the Army and Navy and all the public creditors will be 
made in the same currency, as they ought to be, and must 
be, if we are to have a Government of the people and not of 
the banks ; but the States will be left to regulate their own 
institutions in their own way; and it should not be for- 
gotten that the specie that the Government collects is 
immediately distributed among the people, and goes into 
the general circulation. The effect of this measure will be 
to infuse into the circulating medium of the country, a 
larger proportion of the precious metals, and to contribute 
in no small degree, the means to secure the convertibility 
of bank paper in the several States by preventing the 
exportation of specie, while the process of collection and 
payment will distribute it among the people, where it is 
less exposed to the grasp of the speculators and brokers at 
the moment of pecuniary distress, and by the natural laws 
of trade it will flow back to relieve the banks in the hour 
of peril and enable them to maintain a specie basis. 

"Another, and a very important consideration at this 
time, is the subject of abolition. A sincere attachment to 
the union of the States is among the cardinal doctrines in 
the creed of Democratic Republicanism and ever has been 
from the foundation of the Government to the present time. 
It has already appeared that the cry of southern influence 
was a prominent topic of Federal warfare in the North, 
in the days of Jefferson and Madison, to excite the preju- 
dices of the North against the South, and the seeds of 
political abolition may be seen in the proceedings of the 
Hartford Convention, where they propose an amendment 
to the constitution, 'so that Representatives and direct 
taxes shall be apportioned according to their respective 
numbers of free persons, excluding Indians not taxed and 
all other persons.' The supporters of this Administration 
in the North, with a few exceptions, are utterly opposed to 
all the mean and incendiary schemes of political Abolition- 



102 Life of Nathan Clifford 

ists. They are determined to maintain inviolate the com- 
promises of the Constitution in good faith and under all 
circumstances. I mean not to say that the Whig party 
are all Abolitionists, but most of the Abolitionists are 
Whigs ; and some of their political leaders are incessant in 
their efforts to make political capital out of the natural 
prejudices of a free people against the institution of 
slavery, and also out of the past proceedings of Congress 
touching the disposition of abolition petitions. The 
Abolitionists in the district I represent almost to a man 
vote the Whig ticket. If, at the time of my election, I 
received one vote from that quarter, it is unknown to me. 
I do not believe that any such case can be found. Having 
said thus much, I will only add on this point that many of 
the Abolitionists are honest and upright men, and sincerely 
believe they are engaged in God's service, without the 
remotest intention of doing anything to hazard the peace 
of the country or the Union of the States. . . . " 

Congress adjourned July 21, 1840. This was the year 
of the Presidential election. The Democrats had re-nomi- 
nated Mr. Van Buren and the Whigs were running General 
Harrison with the campaign cries of ' ' Hurrah for Tippe- 
canoe" and "Hurrah for the log cabin and hard cider. "^ 
Mr. Clifford was a candidate for re-election against Daniel "* 
Goodenow. The candidates for Governor were Kent and 
Fairfield as in 1 838. The issues of the campaign were vari- 
ous, though the Whigs adopted no party platform. The 
sub-treasury bill, the tariff, expenditures of money for in- 
ternal improvements, slavery and the personalities of the 
two candidates all played important parts. ^ Van Buren's 
personal habits were such as to cause criticism by those 

' Hatch, History oj Maine, vol. i., pages 238-240. 
* Argus, August i, 1840; Advertiser, August 18, 1840. 
3 Martin Van Buren {American Statesman Series), pages 379, 394. Wilson, 
vol. iv., page 86. 



Representative to Congress 103 

who maintained he had failed to Hve up to the simplicity 
becoming a Democratic president. It may fairly be said 
that his popularity was not sufficient to carry him through 
the period of hard times then afflicting the country, par- 
ticularly in the face of the hysterical enthusiasm manifested 
for General Harrison. 

The defeat of the Democratic nominee was a great dis- 
appointment to Mr. Clifford. He was a strong Van Buren 
advocate and would have preferred to see him the party 
standard bearer in 1 848 instead of Mr. Polk. The national 
failure was mitigated in Mr. Clifford's case, however, by 
his own re-election. The State of Maine went "Hell bent 
for Governor Kent," thus making the fact of Mr, Clifford's 
success all the more outstanding. The Whig party in- 
creased their representation in Congress from Maine from 
two to four, ' breaking even with the Democrats. ^ The 
"Hell bent" should be explained, however, inasmuch as 
on the official returns neither candidate had a majority 
and the election went therefore to the legislature. It 
should be noted that Mr. Clifford's former opponent in the 
state House of Representatives, Mr. William Pitt Fessen- 
den, was sent to Washington at this time from Portland 
as a Whig. 

The short session of the 26th Congress met December 
7, 1840, and has been called "a jubilee of the Whigs." ^ 
It may be passed over with very little notice so far as Mr. 
Clifford's relations with it are concerned and his first term 
as Congressman brought to a close by the few following 
characteristic letters. 

^ The Maine Representatives were: Benj. Randall, Whig, of Bath; 
Nathan Cliflford; George Evans, Whig, of Gardiner; Elisha H. Allen, Whig, 
of Bangor; W. P. Fessenden, Whig, of Portland; N. S. Littlefield, Demo- 
crat, Bridgton; Joshua A. Lowell, Democrat, of Machias; Alfred Marshall, 
Democrat, of China. Maine Register, 1 920-2 1 , page 213. 

' Hatch, History of Maine, vol. i., p. 241. 

3 Von Hoist, vol. ii., page 406. 



104 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Jany 14 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Your kind letter of the inst reached me last evening — 
I am greatly obliged for the interest you manifest about 
my health — I was indeed quite sick — Tuesday 
Wednesday & Thursday I was barely able to ride to the 
House — fortunately the House adjoiu-ned over from 
Thursday to monday during which time I should not have 
[been] able to attend — but on monday I grew better & 
now am quite well — Mr. Anderson took good care of me 
& as soon as I recovered he was attacked with the same 
complaint but in a more aggravated form & is now confined 
to his bed with a congestive fever — I think however he 
is out of danger & will be up in a few days — It has been 
quite sickly here though all are recovering. The complaint 
is very much like a severe cold with great pressure of 
blood upon the head occasioned by bile in the stomach I 
suppose — I took medicine pretty early & thus escaped 
it — I shall be glad to hear from you often — 
Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Jany 16 1841 

My Dear Wife 

The time cannot wear away more slowly with you than 
it does with me — about seven weeks more, a long time — 
is it not ? The weather here has been very uncomfortable 
the sun has not been seen for a long time indeed for about 
ten days. We have no snow but rain & mud abundant — 
& the whole face of the earth is immersed in clouds and 
fog — My health is good — Mr. Anderson is recovering. 
He is able [to] sit up to day. Has been very sick — yester- 
day I dined with the President' & saw the Plate and gold"" 

' Van Buren, 

' These were a source of criticism. Van Buren, page 394, above. 



Representative to Congress 105 

spoons — Thirty six members of the House were pre- 
sent — This is first time I have dined with him— a 
pleasant company no ladies. The members who have 
ladies were invited the day before — V. D. Parris' has 
gone to Boston after his wife — Mr. Lowell^ of Maine 
gave a party the other day in honor of his election — 
twenty-five members were present. As a colleague I was 
licensed to attend — Lowell is quite happy — Nothing 
new here — I hope to receive another letter soon — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Feb i 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I have received the children's very kind letters & read 
them with much satisfaction — I am delighted to hear 
that they are steady in attendance to school & their 
studies — I will remember them — The time will soon 
pass away for my return but I think my stay will be a short 
one for an extra session is undoubtedly agreed upon by the 
whigs — If you have not purchased a quantity of tea 
you may omit it — till I return — of course purchase what 
you want — England has subdued China so that tea will 
fall— 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City Feb 4. 1841 — 

My Dear Wife 

In four weeks from today I presume I shall be ready 
to start for home. Although two thirds of the period of 
my absence has passed away yet the remaining time seems 

' Vergil D. Parris, Rep. to Congress. 

' Joshua A. Lowell, Rep. to Congress. His election had been unsuccess- 
fully contested. 



io6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

long — If you will not charge me with an affection of low 
spirits I will inform you that all agree here that the 
winter has been the most uncomfortable one for fifteen 
years — It has not been very cold but rainy — drizzling 
rain & mud. We have had no mail for two days & I have 
not written for several days — We are still discussing the 
treasury note bill & it is out of my power to say when the 
discussion upon [it] will terminate. I sent you a day or 
two since three packages of flower seeds — I hope you 
will preserve all the numbers of the Globe as I shall want 
them next summer especially if I have to take the Stump. 
Wise' — Alford,^ J. Garland ^ etc etc have come out against 
the policy of the new administration. Some think the 
opposition will be frightened out of calling an extra session 
of Congress — I think not — but we shall know more 
about it in a few days when General Harrison arrives. 
Mr. Anderson is again quite unwell so as to be confined. 
My health is pretty good — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford. 



Washington City Feb. ii 1841 

My Dear Wife 

For the last three days I have been in the chair & have 
had but little time to write — The Bill which I had 
charge of has passed & I am at leisure — 

Nothing new — I have not forgotten the gloves but have 
concluded not to send them by mail but will bring them 
when I come — What color do you want ? — I shall leave 
here the fifth of March 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

' Rep. from Va., later became a Tyler Democrat. 

' Rep. from Ga. 

3 Rep. from Va. See Biog. Cong. Directory under different names. 



Representative to Congress 107 

Washington City Feb i6 1841 

My Dear Wife — 

I have been rather negligent in writing lately but I shall 
soon come myself & will make a thousand excuses if neces- 
sary. Gen Harrison is here. I have seen him. He is an 
imbecile old man, a mere child. We are making progress 
in public business — I am well — Write. 

Yours 

Nathan Clifford 

A few days after the date of the preceding letter, Mr. 
Clifford wrote to his wife that he would not stay to the 
inauguration of General Harrison. The installation into 
office of the despised Whig was more than the ultra Demo- 
cratic sensibilities of the young Congressman could bear to 
see. Therefore, he started home as soon as the active 
duties of the session ended. 



CHAPTER V 
Representative to Congress {Continued) 

President Harrison called a special session of the 27th 
Congress to meet May 31,1841. He did not live to see this 
body convene. He died of pneumonia a month after his 
inauguration, and John Tyler, the Vice-President, and a 
states-rights man of the strictest sort succeeded him. ' 

The election of President Harrison was in many respects 
a remarkable event. The Whigs were without doubt the 
natural successors of the Federalists. The country had 
shown decisively its rejection of the latter's doctrines, and 
in order for a candidate of such a party to succeed, it was 
necessary to masquerade his real objects under a veil of 
beliefs more becoming to the sentiments of the growing 
republic. 

Therefore, the campaign cries of "hard cider," and 
"Tippecanoe and Tyler too" had been designed for the 
purpose of turning public attention aside from the real 
issues and concentrating it upon the picturesque and 
catching characteristics of the head of the ticket. The 
success of this deliberately planned scheme was a great 
political achievement. Harrison found himself chosen 
President with a majority of twenty-five in the House, and 
six in the Senate. 

When the balloting was over and the results assured, the 
victors laid aside their assumed costumes and started on 
the program of the accomplishment of their real desires. 

' Hatch, History oj Maine, vol. ii., page 309. 
108 



Representative to Congress 109 

They intended to repeal the Independent Treasury Act, 
and to establish a new national bank, to inaugurate a 
system of higher tariffs, and to effect ' a distribution among 
the states of the proceeds of the sale of the public lands. 
All these measures were directly contrary to the principles 
of the Democratic party. 

President Tyler was not in sympathy with the Whig 
program as a whole. He had been placed on the ticket for 
the purpose of securing votes from the southern states. 
When confronted with a Whig Congress his position was a 
most embarrassing one. " He had always been opposed to a 
United States Bank as unconstitutional, and when the 
Legislature of his state had instructed him to vote for one, 
he had resigned, rather than obey. Therefore when the 
27th Congress passed a measure chartering such an institu- 
tion Tyler refused to sign it. When later a more moderate 
bill was drawn, the object of which was disguised under the 
name of a fiscal corporation, this also was vetoed. By the 
end of the special session, all the cabinet selected by Gen- 
eral Harrison and continued in office by President Tyler 
had resigned, with the exception of Mr. Webster, who 
remained only until important negotiations with England 
regarding the northeastern boundary should have been 
brought to a successful conclusion. ^ 

To arrive at a better understanding of Mr. Clifford's 
letters, the following description of the Washington of this 
period may be read with interest. 

It was a small, straggling, overgrown, and ill-kept city of 
twenty thousand inhabitants. The streets were full of grass 
and dirt. Cows were even pastured in some of the principal 
streets. The houses were cheerless-looking. Pennsylvania 
Avenue was paved with dust or mud, according to the weather 

' Wilson, History of American People, vol. iv., pages 91-93. 

' Wilson, vol. iv., page 94. 

3 Hatch, History of Maine, vol. ii., page 310. Wilson, vol. iv., page 96. 



no Life of Nathan Clifford 

that prevailed. On a windy day immense clouds of dust swept 
over the street, sometimes making it hard for pedestrians to 
see their way. On a rainy day the avenue was a bank of thick 
black mud. One of the few picturesque sights was the old 
capitol. The Washington of that period was a disgrace. Few 
Congressmen brought their families to live with them, and 
it was the custom for them^ to club together, hire a house, and 
contract with the landlord or a caterer to provide the table. 
These clubs were called "messes," and they were more im- 
portant and exclusive than the name would seem to imply. 
Many famous measures were planned at "messes" and their 
champions appointed. It was the invariable rule that no 
member of a mess should invite an outsider to dinner without 
having obtained the permission of his associates. Strange to 
say refusal rarely gave offense. ^ 

Boston May 24 1841 

Dear Wife 

I arrived safely here friday evening & I shall leave to- 
day (Monday) for New York by the Worcester route — 
Mr. Littlefield has arrived & will remain in Boston till 
tomorrow & take some articles for me not now ready. I 
am going on to secure seats — It is very warm here today. 
Send me Tyler's letter if it contains anything of conse- 
quence Be careful of your health — I am well 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City May 27 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I arrived here yesterday (Wednesday) at eleven o'clock 
a.m. — Have had a very pleasant passage — have got a 
very good seat — I think one of the best in the House — 
Have pretty much concluded a contract for board at Mrs. 
Kennedys where I boarded the last Congress. Messrs. 

' "Life and Times of Hannibal Hamlin," C. E. Hamlin, page 75. 



Representative to Congress m 

Littlefield & Marshall of Maine will board at the same 
place — I am well — when you receive this write — Members 
are arriving every hour. There is a great turmoil about 
seats. I have looked out for all the democratic members 
from Maine — The weather is quite warm here & I hope 
it is at Newfield Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City 30 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I wish Lewis would put my Linseed oil in the cellar & 
the chaise into the chaise house & have the chaise & 
harness oiled — my health is better — much better — I am 
preparing a speech but may not speak for some time — I 
intend to make a free trade one this time. Hope to hear 
from you — Has George bought you a Beef 

Yours 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City June 5 1841 

My Dear Wife 

The House adjourned over from Thursday to monday — 
& thus one week of the session is spent for no purpose — the 
whigs have a very strong majority & yet I have a hope they 
will not be able to do much injury — 

I have not heard from you since I left but hope to in a 
day or two — I am severely afflicted with the tooth ache 
today & did not sleep any of consequence last night — if 
I find no prospect of relief I shall have it extracted — I 
want to hear about your health — Has Charles gone 
away to school — & who is to keep our school — ? — I 
would write more but my tooth ache is so bad I can not — 
Write upon the receipt of this — 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



112 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Washington City June 14 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Yesterday was a very important day for the democracy 
The resolution adopting the rules & providing for the 
appointment of committees was reconsidered which places 
the House back where it commenced — The whigs di- 
vided and gave us the majority — It has been very warm 
here but is a little cooler to day (Thursday) — One of 
our mess Judge Cross is sick & not likely to recover — I 
am well — my tooth ache has subsided & I feel quite cheer- 
ful. Hope to hear from you often 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City June 20 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I have written Charles & to day received a letter from 
him — & also received yours a day or two since — you will 
see by the Newspapers I have spoken often, & intend to do 
so — My health is pretty good. Mr. Littlefield has been 
quite sick but is better — The weather is pretty warm — 
I have sent you a Directory by which you will see the 
names of our mess — Charles has written me about the 
colt and calves — Write as often as you can — What 
makes our friends discontented — Give me particulars 
I want to see you & children very much. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City June 24 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Several days have elapsed since I wrote you & in the 
meantime I have not heard from you — We are getting 
along slowly with the business & the doubt I think in- 
creases whether the whigs will be able to carry their 



Representative to Congress 113 

measures through. It seems to be agreed on all hands that 
the Session will be short — I hope so as I am very anxious 
to come home — The weather is very warm today — my 
health is good & thus far by keeping myself pretty still & 
quiet I have not felt much danger from the heat — How 
do you get along. Does my baby go to school & does he 
study any — does he sleep in Pa's bed? — How does vegeta- 
tion get along? In a few days I will send you some 
money. Make yourself comfortable — 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City June 2^ 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Sabbath day is a long dull day in Washington — It 
amounts to this get up in the morning at half past six do 
nothing till eleven except to eat breakfast — go to meeting at 
eleven & half the time hear a fop preach two hours who is 
not fit to act comedy at a theatre — then go home eat 
dinner if you can find any & then do nothing till bed time 
— However I have written twenty letters today & now 
I will close up the day with one to you — I wonder if 
you will close up the day with one to me — remember the 
golden rule do as you would that others should do to you. 
Perhaps I have not recited it correctly but I have given 
the sentiment — 

I am well except a slight tooth ache this afternoon — 
the first for a week or two — The weather is much 
cooler today — several showers — We have had Rasp- 
berries. Strawberrys are gone — What is the state of 
vegetation at home. I want to hear from the convention 
at Augusta — Write as often as you can & I will do the 
same. I have written quite often I believe — have I not ? 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



114 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Washington City July 6, 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Yours is duly received & read with infinite satisfaction 
for I confess to you that during the last spring I was much 
alarmed lest your complaint should end in a consumption 

— I hope you will still be careful of yourself & avoid all 
exposure to bad weather — It was my opinion that the 
warm weather would agree with you & hence it was that 
I was inclined to have you come with me but as I could not 
know certain I gave it up — I now wish you had come 

— You wish me to inform when I shall come home — It 
is impossible to say, I fear not till the 20th of August but 
will make no stay I will warrant you after adjournment — 
My speech is written out & will be published in a few days 
— when I will send you one. I took a very bad cold the 
night after concluding my speech by sleeping with the 
windows up in my room — After speaking for a consider- 
able part of the two days session my blood was warm & 
the wind I suppose blew directly on to my bed — at all 
events I took a severe cold — though it is some better. I 
am in no danger & shall be well I have no doubt in a day or 
two. Glad all things look well. Suppose Lewis takes care 
of garden. I must stop, as Ray nor of North Carolina is 
replying to my speech. More in a day or two — 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City July 8 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I hope to be able to send you one of my speeches Satur- 
day. Rather best speech I ever made & more than that 
I will not say — Let it be judged of by others — My cold 
is much better & health good — I think you cannot 
complain of me for want of letters though there 
may not be much in them. Under the new Gag 



Representative to Congress 115 

rule of the House we may close the business of the 
Session earlier than I supposed — The rule is an out- 
rageous one but I have this consolation about it & this 
only I shall be able to get home earlier — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

On June 29, 1841, Mr. Chfford spoke against the bill to 
distribute the income' received from the sale of public 
domain among the different states. He maintained that 
by this measure a deficit would be created which the pro- 
tectionists would seek to overcome by a larger duty on im- 
ports, most of which were the necessaries of life. That the 
whole scheme was but a means of gaining a higher tariff. 
He insisted that the act as drawn was in no sense land 
legislation, but related simply to the paying of cash out of 
the National Treasury, a proceeding which could be ac- 
complished properly only "in consequence of appropria- 
tions made by law." There could be no distinction be- 
tween any wealth in the Federal coffers dependent on the 
sources from which the same was derived. Therefore, if 
Congress, as the law-making power of the country, had the 
right to appropriate public funds, the whole question was, 
had it the authority under the Constitution to make a gift 
in this manner to the different states, the admission being 
made that no relation of debtor and creditor exists between 
the general and local governments? 

Mr. Clifford then proceeded under three heads to dispose 
of the argument that there was this connection between 
them because of the conveyance of the land by the latter 
to the former, by proving that the bill itself negatived 
such affiliation. First, the cession was made by the orig- 
inal states while the distribution was to be made among all, 
including those latest admitted. Second, the operation of 

» Congressional Globe. 



ii6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

the bill was confined to income arising from land sales, 
whereas if one owes another, all the assets of the first are 
subject to the payment of his debts. Third, the gradual 
flow of the money was to be stopped in case of war, 
which does not suspend the obligation to pay one's 
creditors. 

He argued that no express authority was granted Con- 
gress by the Constitution to make gifts to the states, and 
that none could be implied from the power to sell the public 
domain. 

As to the contention that the land was ceded in trust by 
the different grantors for the purpose of the payment of 
the Revolutionary debt, and that this being discharged the 
res should revert to the states as beneficiaries, he advanced 
three refutations. First, the deeds of conveyance were 
absolute and not conditional. Second, according to a well 
established rule of law by which the trustee may reimburse 
himself out of the trust fund for all expenses legitimately 
incurred in looking after the same, the United States still 
had millions owed it. Third, by far the greater part of the 
territory was acquired by treaties with foreign powers and 
not from the states, and therefore if any one was to be con- 
sidered a beneficiary it was the individual citizen. 

He then proceeded to show that a distribution of money 
to the different commonwealths, to be used by them in 
paying their debts, would work a hardship. The local 
governments raised their revenue by direct taxation. 
A reduction of their obligations would make unnecessary 
their present high assessments and result in a benefit to 
those having property, — the rich. The deficit in the 
Federal Treasury caused by the measure before the House 
could be made up, however, only by higher duties on 
imports such as tea, sugar, etc., articles which are now 
considered necessaries and are consumed by the poor in 
larger relative quantities than by the well to do. Therefore 



Representative to Congress 117 

the final outcome would be a relief of the wealthy to the 
disadvantage of their less financially fortunate brothers. 

The speech was considered by the writer to be "rather 
best ever made" by him. To the present day reader, how- 
ever, it has not the interest of that on the appropriation 
bill, lacking as it does the historical element vso conspicu- 
ous in the former. 

Washington City July ii 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Enclosed I send you my card & that of my colleagues — 
There is so much aristocracy here we could not get along 
decently without bending to this foolish habit of using 
printed cards — I hope you will not think I have become 
a dandy for I assure you it is not so — When among 
Romans you must bend a little to their customs & be 
despised — The ceremony of form is much increased here 
in these Federal days — We poor democrats stand a poor 
chance at best & would be wholly excluded if we did not 
bend a little to majority. This is Sabbath day when I 
think most of home — wife & children — Write often 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City July 30 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I forgot to reply to that part of your letter relating to 
the female temperance association recently organized in 
our village — as you inform me — I think you have formed 
a very sensible conclusion in regard to it & I entirely ap- 
prove of your determination not to become a member. I 
should be very sorry to learn on my return (if I am ever 
permitted to leave this place) that it had become necessary 
for you to join a temperance society or any other society of 
moral reform — I do not believe the females of our village 
need any such reformation — they are as correct a circle of 



ii8 Life of Nathan CUfford 

females as is to be found anywhere — & need no such 
reformation. As for myself I have not tasted spirit or wine 
since I left home & do not believe I shall during the Session 
but I am quite sure I shall join no society. I have no ob- 
jection to such societies in the abstract but they are very 
likely to extend their influence beyond the pale of good 
example & moral suasion which is the extent they ought to 
go — to ulterior objects — The members are apt not to be 
satisfied with being good themselves & with endeavours to 
reform others but they are often particularly anxious to 
have it understood that they consider themselves better 
than their neighbours & expect to be so considered by 
others — It is to this ulterior influence of such societies 
that I object & my objections are strengthened by every 
days experience — No news — 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City August 3 1841 

My Deati Wife 

We are now engaged upon the Bank — It has been de- 
creed that the Bill shall be taken out of committee on Fri- 
day & undoubtedly will pass on Saturday — 
It is said today that we may adjourn on the 17 — * inst — 
I hope so — if not before & yet I do not think it is certain 
when we shall adjourn — I am well 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City Aug 10 1841— 

My Dear Wife 

I will not tell you when I shall be at home because I do 
not know but think now I will be that way sooner than I 
expected when I last wrote — 



Representative to Congress 119 

Upon my honor I believe the President will veto the 
Bank Bill & save the country from the ruin of that 
monster — 

If the veto comes I think we shall break up soon — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City Aug i8 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I have delayed writing you for several days most sin- 
cerely hoping that I should be able to inform you when I 
might be expected home but I cannot tell — appearances 
indicate that the session may continue two weeks — Mr. 
Lowell & Marshall have left on account of sickness. Mr. 
Littlefield and myself the only democrats from Maine 
dare not leave — I have sent several packages of speeches 
books etc under the frank of the clerk — my trunks are 
packed ready for a start — you must be patient I will come 
as soon as possible — The President has vetoed the Bank 
— The Bankrupt bill passed both houses to day — It 
is odious in many of its provisions but I fear the President 
will sign it — I send you the Age to day which contains 
a neat compliment — My health is pretty good — I keep 
close. Have not attended a party or any public place 
since I have been here — Attend closely to my public 
duties — The federal Newspapers assail me but the demo- 
cratic press sustains me nobly — I will tell all about it 
when I come home. It is not safe to write too much as 
letters are sometimes intercepted. Write immediately 
after you receive this — I shall be here. This is my birth- 
day so I thought I would write you & let you know I had 
not forgotten you — James Libby has been here. He says 
Nathan has been sick. You have not written any thing 
about it. The papers speak of drought — How is it at 



120 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Newfield. I think we may adjourn Monday week the 30 
of this month but cannot tell so long before hand 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Aug 22 1841 — 

My Dear Wife 

I keep writing though I have little to communicate that 
will be interesting to you. I have made so many conjec- 
tures as to the close of the session all which have proved 
erroneous that I begin to think it would have been much 
better if I had said nothing about it — all I can say in ex- 
cuse is that I have at the different times given the best 
opinion that could be formed — It is impossible now to 
say with certainty when we shall adjourn — no day is fixed 
— I think it will be Monday the 30th but the whigs swear 
they will not leave till they make a Bank of some sort & 
I am sure it will take them till December & then they can- 
not accomplish it — They say if Democrats leave they 
will send the Searjeant at arms after them. I dare not 
leave at present — you must not blame me I want to come 
but cannot — Write often — if anything happens so that 
I leave here your letters will be immediately returned to 
me — so write and let me know how you are — I expect the 
whig press will assail me with great bitterness for my 
course upon the Bankrupt bill which was laid on the 
table after my amendment was adopted but by caucus 
management bargain and corruption has since passed & 
an odious law it will be when it is understood. The weather 
is very warm almost beyond endurance — I thought 
yesterday I was going to be sick but am much better to 
day — have attended meeting. The whigs have got up a 
new Bank Bill in the House & call it a Fiscal corporation — 
the name is a deception it is a Bank — It cannot become 



Representative to Congress 121 

a law — Good luck and good health to you. I will come as 
soon as I can 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Aug 24 1841 

My Dear Wife 

Once more I attempt to write with the view of indicating 
a time when I may be expected home — I have named so 
many times that I am ashamed to name another lest it 
should turn out as heretofore in my being compelled to 
disappoint you — It is not my wish to tantalize you, 
God forbid. At one moment it appears the session may 
close soon & the next that it will continue forever — I 
have now a faint hope (only a faint hope) that I may be 
able to leave here on the Sabbath next & if so it is possible 
that I may be at home next tuesday night providing the 
monday morning's train should reach Boston in season to 
take the morning cars to Portsmouth. Having said so 
much now allow me to say it is all uncertain as the land bill 
still hangs in the Senate. It will come to this House. I 
cannot leave till I vote on that — if nothing new occurs I 
will leave as soon as I vote on that measure — I am well 
and very desirous to hear from you — & to see you — 
Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Aug 28 1841— 

My Dear Wife 

It is now determined that I cannot leave tomorrow — 
& of course shall disappoint you once more — The chair- 
man of the Committee on Public lands has just informed 
me he shall not report the senates amendments to the 
land Bill until monday — I cannot leave till that is dis- 
posed of — Having made a speech upon that subject & 



122 Life of Nathan Clifford 

received some credit for it, if I should run off now all the 
newspapers would assail me. Forty members have spoken 
to me this morning upon the subject of my leaving & 
objected so strongly I dare not leave — I will not fix 
another time lest I should disappoint — all I can say is I 
will come as soon as possible — Nothing shall detain me 
one moment after the important business of the session is 
disposed of — I have packed my trunks twice with the 
view of leaving but it is in vain. I cannot come till the 
session closes — I would with all my heart if I could 
without prejudicing my reputation in which you and our 
children are as much interested as I am — but I cannot, so 
do not blame me — be a good girl, I will come as soon as 
possible. The Revenue or tariff Bill is not disposed of in 
the senate. If the tax on tea coffee sugar molasses & salt 
should open for discussion in this House I must stay and 
see to that — so that it is impossible to fix a day when I 
can come — Yours very truly 

Nathan Clifford 

The special session of the 27th Congress adjourned 
September 13, 1841. Owing to the conflict between them 
and the President, the Whigs, in spite of their majority 
had not been able to accomplish much along the line of 
their pre-arranged program. They had passed the land 
bill, had repealed the sub-treasury act, and voted to 
borrow twelve million dollars at 5% interest, ' but having 
been unable to carry through a measure chartering a new 
national bank their work lacked all constructive efficiency. 
Inasmuch as no fiscal agencies had been provided or 
authorized, the way in which the revenue of the country 
was to be handled was left entirely to the discretion of the 
treasury department, without guidance or restraint of law.^ 

* U. S. Statutes at Large, vol. v., page 438. 

* Wilson, History oj the American People, vol. iv., pages 96-7. 



CHAPTER VI 
Representative to Congress {Concluded) 

The 27th Congress came together according to statute 
December 6, 1841. Already local elections had begun 
to turn against the Whigs. ^ For the present, however, 
their majorities in the House and Senate were secure. 
Having failed in many of the measures they had hoped 
to enact at the special session, they now bent their efforts 
to the passage of their tariff. The treasury was empty, 
as the loan previously authorized had failed, only half 
the bonds having been sold. It was plain that the revenue 
of the government must be increased. 

It had been provided in the compromise law of 1833 
that the rates should be gradually reduced until they 
reached a uniform level of 20% which result would take 
place in the ordinary course in 1842.^ The act dis- 
tributing among the States the proceeds of the dis- 
posal of the public lands also stipulated that if the duties 
on imports should be raised above 20%, its own 
operation would be automatically suspended.^ 

Mr. Clifford had prophesied that lacking the money 
accruing from these sales, the income of the country would 
not be sufficient to meet its expenses without an increase 
in the tariff. His forecast had been verified even sooner 

■ McMaster, History of the People of the United States, vol. vii., page 50. 
Wilson, History of the American People, vol. iv., page 98. 

' Wilson, History of the American People, vol. iv., page 97. 

3 Von Hoist, United States, vol. ii., page 454. United States Statutes at 
Large, vol. v., page 454. 

123 



124 Life of Nathan Clifford 

than he expected, and as a part of the Whig plan of 1842, 
it was proposed to do away with the section of the land bill 
which rendered null the provisions of the same under the 
above conditions, thus violating the agreement entered 
into at the special session. If this measure could be 
carried, its proponents not only would have accomplished 
their purpose in turning over large sums of money to the 
states, but would still be free to boost the rates as much 
as they pleased without disturbing the working of their 
previous enactment. 

The opportunity to call the attention of Congress to the 
fulfillment of his prognostications was taken advantage of 
by Mr. Clifford in a speech against the tariff. ' 

He emphasized the broken faith contained in the pro- 
jected repeal of part of the public domain act and referred 
to the promises made by the Whigs at the time of the 
passage of that law. He said that he was against any 
tariff measure until the monies ensuing from land sales 
were restored to the Treasury. He said even with the 
distribution provision stricken out he was opposed to the 
bill, but was willing to vote for a system of revenue to be 
collected from duties on imports graduated to the stand- 
ard of an economical administration, and judiciously 
distributed upon foreign importations, excepting certain 
articles of prime necessity: so that the burdens of tax- 
ation might fall as near as possible, in just proportion, 
upon all classes of the community according to their 
ability to contribute. He was not in favor of free trade in 
the sense of the entire abolition of the impost system, for 
this would make necessary a scheme of direct taxation, in 
order to furnish funds. He was willing to protect the 
American manufacturer, but no more than any other 
group of men. 

He considered the proposed scale of income and expendi- 

' Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 27th Congress, page 669. 



Representative to Congress 125 

ture to be far above what he believed was ' ' the standard 
of an economical administration." He preferred ad 
valorem to specific duties as a fair schedule of the latter 
was subject to be disarranged by the first rise or fall in 
the foreign market. It is interesting to note the care with 
which he undertook to prove that duties on imports are a 
burden upon the consumer. It had been contended in 
the past by the friends of protection that the foreign 
producer pays the tax. Mr. Clifford, with characteristic 
thoroughness, showed the absurdity of such an argument, 
and explained that in any case where an increase of duty 
on an article was followed by a drop in cost, there was a 
reason for such result entirely outside of and disconnected 
with the tariff. 

He said: " The leading causes which influence . . . prices 
are: i. Currency; 2, Demand; 3, Supply; and 4, Cost of 
Production. Now, take the case of the fall of prices in the 
manufactured articles of Great Britain from 1824 to 1830. 
Was it produced by the American tariff of 1824 and 1828 ? 
Certainly not. The Bank of England suspended specie 
payments in 1797, and remained in a state of suspension 
until 1823. The bank circulation of Great Britain, in 
1815, was $287,250,000, and continued in that inflated 
state until the near approach of the period of resuming 
cash payments in 1823. The redundancy of the currency 
had elevated prices of property, and especially of manu- 
factured articles, far above their natural level." He then 
showed that the end of inflation, coupled with the close 
of war on the continent and the consequent increase in 
production, as well as the diminishing cost of the same, 
owing to improved methods therein, had been the real 
cause of the falling prices of the articles mentioned. 

He showed conclusively that the effect of a duty on 
imported goods must be to increase the price of all goods 
of the same class to that extent, no matter whether of 



126 Life of Nathan Clifford 

foreign or domestic manufacture, since the imposition 
allows the home producer to add the amount of the tax to 
his former price. 

He stated that the majority of his constituents were 
opposed to a high tariff for the reason that they believed 
it to be a system of plunder to enrich the few by taxing the 
labor and industry of the whole though some men were 
deceived by such phrases as "protect American labor" 
or "foster American industry" and "encourage domestic 
manufactures." He maintained that though the Whigs 
came into power with promises of retrenchment, none of 
these poHcies had been or would be fulfilled. That the 
bill before the house provided for greater revenue than 
the legitimate needs of the government required and that 
such a law necessarily paralyzed commerce, destroyed 
trade and reduced the price of agricultural products. 

Mr. Clifford then proceeded to show by statistics the 
disastrous results of the whole system upon Maine's 
shipping industry and upon foreign trade, proving 
as an incident thereto that Great Britain bought more 
of us than we of her. He made it clear that high 
duties make low prices of agricultural products and high 
costs to the farmers; that they affect the laboring man 
more injuriously than any other class for the reason that 
prices are raised before wages, and as soon as the latter 
begin to go up in consequence of the increase of the 
former there is immediately a new demand for greater 
protection. He exploded the theory that big pay 
spells prosperous workers, for if living is more expensive, 
greater money income may have even smaller purchas- 
ing power. 

In reply to the argument that manufacturing villages 
constitute an enlarged market for the farmer, laborer and 
mechanic who should therefore be willing to submit to the 
inequalities of the system, he demonstrated that any such 



Representative to Congress 127 

gain was more than offset by the loss caused from en- 
hanced prices; that such contention was but a repetition 
of the English defense of their corn laws. It amounted to 
an insistence on the part of the magnate that by force of 
artificial legislation all other persons shall be constituted 
customers for his benefit, and be compelled to purchase his 
goods at a figure advanced in consequence of the imposed 
duties which prevent importation. Why not protect 
other classes in the same way ? What would the result be ? 
As nations cannot buy of us unless we purchase of them, 
all foreign commerce would cease. Thirty years ago in- 
fant industries might have needed government help, but 
they certainly do not require it now that they are fuU 
grown. The bill was then but an attempt to secure a 
perpetuity of special privileges at the expense of interests 
of more general importance. 

The whole theory of protection, he said, is wrong. It 
does not elevate the laboring man, it degrades him. Oiu* 
manufacturer needs no assistance. The then existing 
depression in business was due to the world conditions, 
expanded currencies and a false and vicious system of 
credit. Patient industry and steady pursuit of some 
honest employment would soon put an end to all dis- 
tress, but relief would not come by increasing the bur- 
dens of taxation. England had tried such a cure and 
failed. 

The speech is in some respects a masterly expose of the 
fallacies of the hothouse system of forcing business by the 
use of a stimulant, each application of which renders 
necessary a further and greater use of the same invigor- 
ator, till the commercial world is as dependent on it as is 
the drug addict upon his needle. It should be read by all 
opponents of a tariff. 

The following letters give a good idea of the writer's life 
at this period. 



128 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Washington City. Dec 6 1841 

My Dear Wife 

I arrived here safely on Saturday evening but had no 
writing materials yesterday & could not write you — I had 
a pleasant ride across the Sound — the water was as smooth 
as a mill pond. When I got to New York it commenced 
raining but I kept on in the cars & was not troubled. I am 
still at the tavern here. My friends are much disappointed 
that I did not bring you. Hope you arrived home safely. 
The House is about to be called to order. I will write 
you again this evening. Write often & let me know how 
the children are. I am well 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Dec 12 1841 — 

My Dear Wife 

One week has passed away & we have done nothing 
worth mentioning. I have made one speech for which 
the newspapers compliment me. It was an off hand effort 
I shall not write it out you will see a short sketch in the 
Globe. . . . One of these days I will make a better . . . 
I attended church today — rather lonely though the house 
was full. I do not like my boarding house quite so well as 
the old one. . . . Our committee will be announced 
tomorrow. I expect the speaker ' will put me in the worst 
place he can as I gave him my mind in full the other day in 
debate — never mind I will be after him — Write 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Jany 1842 

My Dear Wife 

Today being the anniversary of the 8th of Jany — I 
thought I could not do a better deed that to write to you & 

' John White of Kentucky, Biog. Cong. Directory, page 878. 



Representative to Congress 129 

the children & let you know that I have not forgotten you 
— I attended a great party at the Russian minister. I 
never attended before — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

The "party" at the Russian embassy, or at all events, 
one during the same session, is described by Hon. William 
Pitt Fessenden in his correspondence in such an amusing 
way that a portion of the latter's letter is here quoted. 
The experience must have been novel to the young country 
Congressman from Maine. 

When I ascended the steps there stood a man in uniform with 
a chapeau, whom I took at first for an officer waiting for his 
friends, but soon found he was the porter. Entering, we passed 
through the hall in which were some six or eight more gentle- 
men in lace but they were mostly colored gentlemen, who 
bowed very obsequiously, and pointed the way upstairs. As- 
cending, we found another personage of the same description 
who announced us to Mr. Bodisco, who was stationed at the 
entrance of the small room over the entrance. My name was 
announced as Mr. Pleasant, which, being highly appropriate, 
I permitted to pass. Moving on through the rooms, we found 
Madame stationed at the farther end of the farthest, and on 
giving our names to a gentleman who stood by her, were in- 
troduced, bowed, and fell back. I astounded some of our good 
people here this morning by assuring them gravely that I 
took the porter for Bodisco and the other servants for the 
whole line of foreign ambassadors, and accordingly went bow- 
ing from the hall door to the entrance of the reception room, 
being much astonished when I got there to find that the 
introduction was yet to come. 

Well being in, let us take a look at the good people as- 
sembled. Mens. B. was strapped in lace and glittering with 
orders, — beruffled, bepadded, bestiffenedn wigged, mustach- 
ioed, and whiskered, — a short, thick, squat fellow, but civil 



130 Life of Nathan Clifford 

and well bred. His wife was simply dressed, but glittering in 
jewels, well put on and exhibiting a bosom which attracted 
more admiration than all of them, an exceedingly fine looking 
woman, — decidedly surpassing in beauty any one of her guests, 
so far as looks go, fitted to grace any rank, and of her looks 
alone, had I an opportunity to judge. The Secretary and 
divers others were there, but no one seemed a lion, for there 
were too many of them. 

Washington City Jan 1842 

My Dear Wife 

You have done pretty well on the score of writing lately, 
I hope you will continue to do as well — Nothing new here. 
The weather is very pleasant. I am well — Business 
progresses slowly. I think the session will be long — We 
are engaged upon the Bankrupt law. I think the House will 
repeal it. What its fate will be in the senate I cannot say. 

Yours 
Nathan Clifford 

The bill referred to in the above note was passed at the 
special session and described by Mr. Clifford in one of the 
letters quoted in the last chapter as "odious" in many of 
its provisions. It had been enacted in response to the 
cries of distress arising from the disordered financial state 
of the country caused by the over-speculation and sus- 
pension of specie payments mentioned above. The 
House repealed the measure but the Senate stood firm. 
The act was done away with, however, at the next meeting 
of Congress in answer to urgent appeals from all parts of 
the nation. 

Washington City May 16 1842 

My Dear Wife 

Nothing new to write — The weather has been rather 
cool though I believe there has been no frost — I acci- 



Representative to Congress 131 

dently left my window up during the night & took cold & 
have a tooth ache not very severe otherwise well 

I learn that there are a good many candidates for my 
place — I shall not make much effort upon the subject 
but leave the whole matter to my political friends — I 
hope to hear from you often. Being in the chair upon the 
Navy Bill I shall be closely confined for a time — It is 
expected that Stanley & Wise may fight though the latter 
is under Bonds to keep the peace. 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City — June 3, 1842 

My Dear Wife 

I received Nancy's letter yesterday & was much grati- 
fied to learn that you are all well — I had written Nancy 
just before the receipt of hers & therefore direct to you — 
I judge from her letter that you are very industrious — 
She says you have so much work to do you cannot write 

— I will not scold any till I come home & then we will 
arrange things so that you may have a little more leisure 

— Nancy seems to suppose from the Glohe that I may 
get home by the 1 5th of June — but that motion did not 
prevail — A resolution fixing the 25th of July as a day of 
adjournment was moved in the senate yesterday & I 
understand there is some hope that it may prevail & if so I 
think the House would concur. I shall vote for it as it is 
the earliest day we can get & if we do not vote for that I 
fear they will keep us till Sept — One third of the mem- 
bers would be willing to stay the whole year or rather to 
let Congress sit for they will not stay in their seats half the 
time — I believe I have not missed one vote — I was sick 
one or two days but no vote was taken I think during that 
time. Since that period I have been in my seat every 
moment during the session of the House — 



132 Life of Nathan Clifford 

The duels which were talked about have all blown away 
& everyone is laughing at southern chivalry — These 
bullies have no courage to spare — Mr. Wise is a brave 
man let him be what he may in other respects — When 
the difficulty between him & Stanley first took place it is 
said that Stanley's wife wanted her husband to fight & said 
she would be his second if he could not find a better one 
but when she found that Wise was ready she began to cry 
& whine & beg her friends to interfere — Stanley's 
friends made the first advance & the matter is settled 
they having agreed never to speak to each other — 

Try & write occasionally unless your work is very 
pressing — 

I hope you will not misunderstand me for really I am 
only laughing at your excuse. It is positively worse than 
none. Don't you think so? — Come now, lay aside all 
excuses & write as often as possible — I have written so 
often without an answer that I have much difficulty in 
thinking of anything to write — It is much easier to write 
in answer to one received. 

Yours truly & sincerely 
Nathan Clifford 

The persons referred to in the last letter were Henry 
A. Wise,' later Governor of Virginia, and at this time 
representative from that state, and Edward Stanly, mem- 
ber of Congress from North Carolina. The former had 
been the challenger. Maine had been greatly stirred in 
1838 by the death of her congressman, Jonathan Cilley, 
who had been shot and killed in a duel by William J. 
Graves of Kentucky. Therefore any news about such 
matters were absorbed with great interest by all. Wise 
had been Grave's second, and had incurred considerable 

' Wise, Life of Henry A Wise, page 80 et seq., Nat. Cyc. of Am. Biog., vol. 
iv., page 372. 



Representative to Congress 133 

odium in the north by his connection with this disgraceful 
affair. He was later openly upbraided by Sumner in 
Congress on account of it. He had engaged successfully 
in several duels before and therefore, apparently, Stanly 
considered him too much of an opponent. As a corollary 
to the Stanly-Wise quarrel, the Hon. Reverdy Johnson 
became partially blind. One of the would-be contestants 
was practicing in Johnson's yard, when the latter, to show 
his skill, picked up a revolver and shot at a tree. The ball 
rebounded in such a way as to strike him in the head, 
putting out one of his eyes. 

It has been already stated that Mr. Webster had 
remained in the Tyler cabinet for the purpose of settling 
the Northeastern boundary. England had sent Lord 
Ashburton to this country to conclude a treaty. The two 
men had arrived at an agreement which established a 
conventional line far different from that of 1783, but not 
very unlike that drawn by the arbiter in 1 83 1 . The result 
was a considerable loss of territory to Maine, although an 
indemnity was paid to her on this account.' It would 
seem that such a compact was in practical accord with the 
suggestions of the committee of the legislature on which 
Mr. Clifford had served. However, the reduction in the 
area of his home state presented too good an opportunity 
to attack an opponent, to be passed over by a politician of 
Mr. Clifford's ability. Therefore the whole subject was 
given full attention by him in a speech to which the Port- 
land Advertiser applied the word "rave." 

Many other Whig newspapers attacked Mr. Clifford for 
his attitude on this question, and also for his stand against 
the tariff. It is easy to imagine the pleasure which such 
articles afforded him. Praise from the press of his 
opponents would probably have made him feel badly. 
Abuse from them was his enjoyment 

I McMaster, vol. vii., pages 275-7. 



134 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Congress adjourned August 31, 1842 and assembled 
again December 5th of the same year. ' This session was 
the last during which Mr. Clifford was to be a member 
of that body. The elections of 1842 had swept away the 
Whig majority in the House so that in the following year 
the Democrats were to have sixty-one more votes than the 
former. =* The latter were thus jubilant. Under such 
circumstances nothing of great importance could be 
expected to emanate from the assembly. We may pass 
over this period without pause except to say that Mr. 
Clifford experienced a very severe illness during the early 
part of 1843, which came near ending fatally for him. 

Washington City Gadsleys Hotel 

Sunday morning Dec. 4 1842 

My Dear Wife 

I arrived here safely last evening — in pretty good health 
some cold — No accident except in passing from Kittery 
to Portsmouth in a waggon it broke down & I was thrown 
out but not injured, only bruised a little upon the 
shoulder. I am well now — I shall write often — I 
think by what I hear that I shall board at the old place — 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 



Washington City Dec 6, 1842 

My Dear Wife 

I have taken a boarding House with Mrs. Hamilton with 
whom I boarded last year — she has a new House. My room 
smokes badly. Unless it can be made to draw I shall be 
obliged to leave & get another place. A mason is coming 
tomorrow to try — We have a large mess all members — 
no senators — I am boarded a little cheaper than usual. 

' Biographical Congressional Directory, 27th Congress. 
* Wilson, vol. iv., page 98. 



Representative to Congress 135 

Of course I shall stay unless the chimney smokes too bad 
— I mean to spend as little as possible — 

I took a bad cold when I took off my flannels but it is 
better — Marshall, Littlefield, Lowell, & myself are all in 
the same House & our rooms on the same floor — Write 
and let me know how you get along & the children. Tell 
Charles to remember my advice — 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Dec 7 1842 

My Dear Bro 

I have received one or two letters lately & have not 
found time to reply — I embrace the earliest moment 
when business does not command my attention to drop 
you a line — I have made arrangements to place George 
on the SS Libbey place — it is a fine piece of land — He 
has repaired the House & I think is disposed to try to get 
a living by work. I got him a yoke of oxen & have assisted 
in part to pay to winter them — Have aided him to a 
little money — & he has your mothers claim upon 
Gillpatrik who will furnish him with com & grain. So 
much for George — Calebs case was not much better & 
in some respects worse — I have settled up all his debts 
except yours & Towles — & put him once more upon his 
legs — I have paid & given my Note for him for twenty 
two hundred dollars — I had to go to the Bank & Get 
$700 to pay such as could not be delayed. Upon most of 
the rest I have a year — It is a great debt — few brothers 
in this wicked world would do as much as I have done for 
Caleb but I want to see him prosper — I think he will 
try hard to do well & there is nothing to prevent — 
Towle promises not to call on him at present. Of course 
he is independent. He was the most grateful man I ever 
saw — he says if God spares his life I shall be paid — I 



136 Life of Nathan Clifford 

have just got settled. Will write you again soon — Write 
me as often as you can & do not think hard because I do 
not write oftener — I write as often as I find time — 
Give my respects to your family & Mrs Ayer 

Yours truly 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Tuesday March 14, 1843 

My Dear Wife 

I am obliged to disappoint you once more — I am 
still in my room though I have the promise of the Dr that 
I may go into the Parlour tomorrow — He says if I am 
prudent & careful I can leave with safety for home on 
Saturday or monday provided the weather is fair — ■ If it 
is a fair day tomorrow I mean to ride out in the middle of 
the day — I feel much better, as though I was really 
getting well — Albert will stay & go to Dover with me — 
I have had a pretty severe time Hannah, but I trust in 
God it is chiefly over — I have thought more of you 
& the children than myself — I will tell you all when I 
come — I shall not write again unless I find I am doomed 
to a further disappointment- ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ 

Nathan Clifford 

The Congressional Election in Maine had been post- 
poned from 1842 to 1843. This course had been made 
necessary to accommodate the new apportionment under 
the census.' By this act Maine's representation in the 
lower house was reduced from eight to seven. 

The first district Democratic Convention was held at 
Limerick, August 2, 1843. Mr. Clifford was a candidate 
for renomination, but was defeated, after several ballots, 
by Joshua Herrick.^ This contest occurred during the 

' Hamlin, Life and Times of Hannibal Hamlin, page 75. 
' Portland Argus. 



Representative to Congress 137 

Anderson-Kavanagh fight over the governorship, an 
account of which is given in the following chapter. As 
Mr. Clifford had always been associated with the Ander- 
son-Fairfield faction, it is quite likely his lack of success 
may be attributed to the work of the Kavanagh men. 

As we shall see, this failure to be returned to Congress 
had an influence upon Mr. Clifford's life very different 
from what he expected. It was without doubt one of the 
causes which led Polk to select Mr. Clifford as attorney 
general. The President thus hoped to cement together 
the two factions of the party. 

The following extract from the account of the proceed- 
ings of the convention, taken from the 'PoTtland Advertiser 
of August 9, 1843, is amusing: 

Mr. Clifford kept himself in some comer in the tavern till 
the nomination was made. I then saw him. Malice and re- 
venge were stamped indelibly on his visage in characters too 
legible to be erased. It is said by the knowing ones that the 
dishonorable course which he had pursued in relation to his 
nomination has nearly used him up. So may it be. They 
ought to have known him before. 

An Eye Witness. 



CHAPTER VII 

Attorney General 

In his memoir of Nathan Clifford printed in the Maine 
Historical Society collections, Honorable James W. 
Bradbury says : 

In 1846, a few months after my election to the senate, the office 
of Attorney General of the United States became vacant by 
the resignation of Mr. Mason, and my feelings of friendship for 
Mr. Clifford prompted me to make the effort to obtain from 
the President his appointment to that office. Upon consulta- 
tion with my colleague. Senator Fairfield, he with Judge Rice 
and two or three other gentlemen united with me in the effort. 

This was undertaken without the knowledge of Mr. Clifford 
and the appointment was made without any solicitation or ac- 
tion on his part whatever. 

Honorable Hugh J. Anderson was one of the "two or 
three other gentlemen ' ' who interested themselves in Mr. 
Clifford's behalf. The following is a copy of a part of Mr. 
Anderson's letter to President Polk under date of October 
4, 1846. 

Upon my return from an absence of some weeks from home, 
I learn that some of our political friends in this state have 
suggested for your consideration the name of Honorable Na- 
than CHfford for the vacant post of Attorney General. Not 
knowing whether a selection has yet been made nor how far it 
may comport with your inclination to come to Maine for that 
functionary, I cannot omit to express my cordial concurrence 
in the views which have been communicated from the State in 
favor of Mr. Clifford. 

138 



Attorney General i39 

The reputation possessed by Mr. Clifford in this State both 
as a lawyer and a politician would render the appt. in the 
judgment of his friends judicious and fortunate and the ex- 
treme popularity he enjoys would undoubtedly give the adm. 
increased strength. 

I have known him long and intimately and do not doubt 
that you would find [him] a safe and able counsellor. , 

In reply to a letter of Senator Fairfield, President Polk 

wrote : 

(Private) 

Washington City Sept. 30th, 1846. 
My Dear Sir: 

I received in due season your letter of the 7th instant, in 
which you request me to appoint the Honorable Nathan Clifford 
of Maine, Attorney General, of the United States — I have 
received also similar letters from your colleague in the Senate 
{Mr. Bradbury) and from two or three other leading gentlemen 
in Maine. 

I have but little personal acquaintance with Mr. Clifford, 
but from his public character and the opinion expressed by 
yourself and others of his political orthodoxy and his qualifica- 
tions to discharge the duties of the office and presuming too 
that he accords with me in opinion, and approves the course 
of my administration — and that he will heartily cooperate 
with me in conducting it, I have this day addressed him and 
invited him to accept the office of Attorney General. Your 
opinions and wishes have had much weight with me in coming 
to this decision. 

In the event of Mr. C's acceptance it is desirable that he 
should repair to Washington and enter upon the duties of the 
office with as little delay as possible. Judge Mason's health is 
not very good — and he finds the labors of the Navy Depart- 
ment as much as he can well bear: Since his appointment as 
Secretary of the Navy he has acted also as Attorney General 
ad interim. The sooner his successor as Atty Genl takes charge 
of that office, the sooner of course he will be relieved from its 



140 Life of Nathan Clifford 

duties — and be enabled to devote his whole time to the Naval 
service. 

I have addressed my letter to Mr. Clifford to Newfield Maine 
If I have mistaken his Post Office, will you do me the favor to 
infonn him — that I have written to him & addressed my 
letter to Newfield. 

I am with great respect 

Your friend & Obt-Servt. 

Hon. John Fairfield James K. Polk 

Saco 
Maine 

President Polk's diary under date of September 26, 
1846 contains the following entry: 

Before the Cabinet adjourned, I remarked to them that as 
the Hon. Franklin Pierce to whom I had tendered the office of 
attorney Gen'l had declined to accept it, that I must select 
some other person for that office. I informed them that the 
Hon. Nathan Clifford of Maine had been recommended to me, 
but that I had very little knowledge of him and did not know 
his qualifications as a lawyer, and added that I did not desire 
to bring any one into the Cabinet who would be exceptionable 
to any of its members, as I desired to preserve the harmony 
which had hitherto prevailed in our councils. All the members 
present expressed their entire satisfaction with Mr. Clifford, 
but none of them were able to inform me what his legal at- 
tainments were. They knew him to be a man of talents and to 
stand high in Maine, but they had not sufficient knowledge of 
him as a lawyer to speak with confidence. At my request the 
Secretary of the Treasury agreed to consult Judge Paris of 
Maine confidentially (the 2nd Comptroller of the Treasury) as 
to Mr. Clifford's standing in Maine as (and) especially as to 
his legal attainments. The Cabinet adjourned & in about an 
hour the Secretary of the Treasury returned and informed me 
that he had seen Judge Paris, who informed him that Mr. 
Clifford was a man of very high standing; that he had filled 
the office of attorney Gen'l under the State Government of 



Attorney General 141 

Maine for several years, and that his attainments as a lawyer 
were respectable. I sent for Mr. Appleton of Maine (ch, Clk. 
in the Navy Department) and consulted him confidentially 
as to Mr. Clifford & his legal attainments. He gave me about 
the same account of him which Judge Paris had given to the 
Secretary of the Treasury. 

Let this next letter speak for itself. 

Copy 

Newfield — Sept 14, 1846 
Private 

Hon. James W. Bradbury 
Dear Sir 

Yours of the 4th inst came to this place during my 
absence — I embrace the first moment since my return 
when by the course of our mails I could reply, having 
reached home on friday last after the departure of the east- 
ern mail — You do not experience such difficulties & 
without this explanation might misinterpret the delay — 

I saw Mr. F. a few moments last Monday when he 
broached the subject of the Attorney Generalship to me 
and acquainted me with your views, in which he seemed 
to concur — After what reflection I could give the sub- 
ject at the moment I told him that I would leave the 
matter to you & him to act as you thought best with this 
understanding that I had not made myself a candidate 
(as I had not thought of the place, & of course I could not be 
understood as in any way waiving my chance for the 
senate when that time comes round ... I fear it is 
rather late to start a candidate & what is more I have been 
some what too long in private life — If the democracy'- of 
the State or even of this district had given me one half 
the chance which has been extended to others that might 
be named I could safely aspire to that place or even a better 
but as things are I cannot help feeling some misgivings. 
Perhaps it is best to make the effort — It can do no hurt — 



142 Life of Nathan Clifford 

It may do some good by showing that we can be united on 
one man — & thereby place our State in some better 
condition hereafter. Possibly it may succeed — though I 
think not — 

I thank you for the kind & generous sentiments of your 
letter — We shall do our whole duty here in regard to the 
election 

Very Respectfully 
Your friend 

Nathan Clifford 

Quoting further from the President's Diary: 

Thursday, ist October, 1846. — I omitted to state in 
yesterday's diary that I addressed a letter on that 
day to the Hon. Nathan Clifford of Maine, tendering 
to him the office of Atto. Gen'l of the U. S. in place 
of Judge Mason, appointed Secretary of the Navy : (see letters 
to Mr. Clifford & to the Hon. John Fairfield, U. S. Senator 
from Maine, by whom among others Mr. Clifford was recom- 
mended). 

Thursday, 15th October, 1846. — I received this morning a 
letter from the Hon. Nathan Clifford of Maine, accepting the 
office of Attorney General of the United States in place of Mr. 
Mason resigned, which I had tendered to him in a letter ad- 
dressed to him on the 30th ultimo. Mr. Clifford states in his 
letter of acceptance that he will be in Washington in a day or 
two after his letter would reach me, ready to enter upon the 
duties of the office. He may therefore be exoected in a day or 
two. 

Saturday, 17th October, 1846. — The Hon. Nathan Clifford 
of the State of Maine, to whom I had tendered the office of 
Attorney General of the United States, called this morning. 
I handed to him a letter which I had addressed to him enclosing 
a copy of a letter which I had addressed to each member of 
my Cabinet in March, 1845, when I was about to organize my 
administration (see letter Book). I had a conversation of some 
length with Mr. Clifford. I addressed a note to the State 



Attorney General i43 

Department, directing a commission for Mr. Clifford as Atto. 
Gen'l of the U. S. to [be] prepared. The commission was sent 
to me as directed, when I signed it and delivered it to him. 

This being Cabinet day I invited Mr. Clifford, though he 
had not taken the oath of office, to remain with me in Cabinet 
during the meeting to-day, & he did so. 

Washington City Thursday Eve 
8 oclock Oct 15 1846 

My Dear Wife 

I have just arrived here safe & in good health — as the 
weather has [been] somewhat unfavourable I thought you 
would wish to hear of my arrival early — I am at Cole- 
man's National Hotel — When I have a moment to spare 
I will give you an account of my journey — Remember to 
each of the children & accept my best wishes for yourself 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Oct 17 1846 — 

My Dear Wife 

I have just returned from the Presidents — having ac- 
cepted the ofhce of Attorney General. Thus you see we 
are separated for sometime — my lot will be the hardest — 
you must pray for my success — I shall devote my best 
energies to the performance of my duties — If industry 
& integrity will ensure success under the blessing of Provi- 
dence I shall be successful. My health & spirits are 
good — Remember me to the children & all our friends 
& neighbors — 

I have not the franking privileges — The Heads of 
Departments have to pay their own postages like other 
citizens — 

My best wishes attend you in all your cares & anxiety 
Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



144 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Washington City Oct. 25, 1846 

My Dear Wife 

Finding myself alone I embrace a moment to fulfill my 
promise of writing once a week — which I fear I shall 
hardly live up to & yet I shall not omit it when oppor- 
tunity occurs to scribble even five lines. 

My journey here was the most unpleasant I ever experi- 
enced — though I am not aware that I experienced any very 
great danger. We were nearly 2^2 hours crossing Provi- 
dence River, while the wind blew a hurricane. When we 
reached Stonington Capt Thayer decided of his own 
accord not to go out, which saved all danger — The next 
morning it was calm & pleasant. I have taken rooms at 
Mrs. Latimer s where the President boarded when he first 
came on while the White House was being repaired — I 
think I have a good House — Albert Smith of Maine is 
here — The duties of my office are arduous & will employ 
my whole time but I have full confidence that I can meet 
every reasonable expectation. Of one thing I am certain 
if industry & integrity can ensure success under the 
blessing of Providence I may expect to be successful. My 
health is good & thus far my reception here has been every 
thing which my warmest friends could desire. 

The Newspapers speak of my returning home for my 
family — you know we talked that over & settled what we 
would do — I am satisfied we settled it right. The people 
here would bankrupt us if we went to Housekeeping here. 
I want to see the children already but such feelings must 
not be indulged & so I banish them. I expect George 
FrankHn will forget me but I shall not forget him or any of 
the others. Be careful of your health & do not fail to keep 
a girl to assist you. It will enable you to preserve your 
own health & also to watch more carefully the children. 

;Far & near the Newspapers have treated me respect- 
fully at least such as I have seen. 



Attorney General 145 

I have got my clothing from Boston — it is very good — I 
am now well provided for in this respect. I shall not write 
much about politicks lest one of my letters should be 
intercepted. 

Accept my best wishes for yourself & children & remem- 
ber me to all our friends 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

The democracy in Maine must be held together at all 
hazards. Apparently, Mr. Clifford was not aware that 
Mr. Anderson had been one of his sponsors. 

Washington City Oct. 23, 1846. 

Hon. Hugh J. Anderson 

Dear Sir 

I have accepted the office of Attorney General of the 
United States & entered upon its duties. If industry & 
integrity can ensure success under the blessing of Provi- 
dence I may hope to be successful. I hope to enjoy your 
friendship in my new & responsible situation. It came 
unsought by me & quite unexpected — and certainly was 
well meant towards Maine whether worthily bestowed 
or not which perhaps the future will disclose — my time 
will be much employed for a few months in the per- 
formance of responsible & urgent duties & yet I shall be 
gratified to hear often from my democratic friends in 
Maine & to respond to their favors as fully as possible. 
The recent elections have come in badly & yet it occasions 
no alarm here. The prevailing opinion is that time & a 
steady purpose will right all things . . . 

I still hope that Maine may be saved & that our friends 
will learn the importance of union & harmony. If Maine 
is lost the result can only be ascribed to our feuds. We 
have a decided majority if the members of the party will 



146 Life of Nathan Clifford 

but unite — many of the reasons which occasioned our 
division refer entirely to the past and grew out of a dijffer- 
ence of opinion in regard to men ; in all such matters why 
may we not adopt some well considered steps to a reconcil- 
iation ! It is not my purpose to make any advance of this 
kind except in concurrence with my old & long tried friends 
& now only suggest the point for consideration. Will you 
give me your views upon the subject. It seems to me 
starting now & taking things as they are unless something 
is done we are in danger of losing the State at the next 
Presidential election. What say you? If you visit 
Washington this winter I hope to see you often & to 
renew & cement the friendship so long subsisting between 
us, which I fear was slightly marred by the events of the 
last session of our Legislature. 

I am with Great Respect 
Your Obt Servt 

Nathan Clifford 

In his history of Maine, Mr. Hatch seems to show sur- 
prise that a lawypr of whose attainments only the word 
"respectable" could be used should have been appointed 
attorney general of the United States. ' The explanation 
seems to lie in the fact that the act was an olive branch. 
Mr. Clifford had been a Van Buren man instead of a Polk 
adherent. The split in the Democratic ranks over the 
Presidential candidate had been wide, and Polk was 
anxious to bridge it as soon as possible. 

This division dated back to the year 1843 when Ruel 
Williams resigned as United States Senator. The legisla- 
ture then elected Governor Fairfield in his place. This 
made necessary the withdrawal of the latter from the 
gubernatorial chair, to which by constitutional provision 
ascended Edward Kavanagh, President of the Senate, a 

" Vol. ii., page 328. 



Attorney General i47 

wealthy merchant of Nobleborough, of Irish birth and a 
Roman Catholic. ' 

Mr. Kavanagh was a supporter of Calhoun for the 
presidency in 1844 and desired to be elected to the position 
he was holding by succession. The Democrats of the 
"line," if the term may be used, were in favor of Hugh J. 
Anderson of Belfast for the latter office. In fact it is 
probable that an agreement had been reached by the 
friends of Fairfield and Anderson that they would unite 
to send the former to the Senate and to make the latter 
Governor. The religious question unfortunately entered 
into the contest with the usual attendant bitterness. 
Anderson received the nomination. He represented the 
group in the party which favored Mr. Van Buren for head 
of the federal ticket. 

In spite of the temporary rift the Maine Democrats 
entered the national campaign fairly well united. Still 
some of the defeated faction attempted to continue the 
fight, though Governor Anderson tried to distribute his 
appointments in such a way as to satisfy both sides. 

Van Buren seemed assured of victory in the convention. 
A majority of the delegates were ready to vote for him. 
However, the adoption of the rule making a vote of two- 
thirds of those present necessary for a choice put an end 
to his hopes. He had lost strength during the months 
preceding the date of meeting by a letter^ containing a 
statement to the effect that he was opposed to the annex- 
ation of Texas which had revolted from Mexico and set 
up a separate government, recognized by Jackson in 1837. ^ 
Tyler had negotiated a treaty of union with Texas which 
was awaiting ratification by the Senate. "^ The South was 
anxious to join Texas to the United States, because more 

' Hatch, vol. ii., pages 315, 316-319. 

" Martin Van Buren, Am. St. Sr., pages 404-407. 

3 Wilson, vol. iv., page 107. ■• Ibid., page no. 



148 Life of Nathan Clifford 

slave territory would thus be created' and also for the 
reason that she feared an intervention by England for the 
purpose of obtaining a recognition from Mexico of Texan 
independence to which would be attached provisos of 
trade concessions and abolition of slavery. ^ 

James K. Polk of Tennessee, who has been described as 
' ' the first dark horse of the political race-course, ' ' ^ received 
the nomination by the efforts of men impressed with the 
determination to annex Texas at all hazards. While it is 
not meant to infer that the Kavanagh followers were 
united as a body against the selection of Van Buren, still 
the defeat of the Fairfield-Anderson group's candidate, 
added to the bad feeling engendered over the Kavanagh 
campaign, made a conciliatory appointment a wise move. 
Particularly was this the case in as much as Fairfield had 
been suggested for vice-president. Mr. Clifford had been 
a loyal supporter of Polk, though preferring Van Buren, 
was closely associated with the Fairfield faction, was out of 
office and was a bit dissatisfied with his political treatment. 

Washington City Nov 21 1846 

My Dear Wife 

I was rejoiced to receive your letter communicating 
the acceptable intelligence that yourself & the children are 
in good health & that your business affairs were in a good 
state of preparation for the approach of winter. One good 
result will be effected by our separation, if no other, the 
necessity thrown upon you by my absence will give you a 
better knowledge of business affairs & thus fit you to man- 
age your own affairs in case of my death, which though not 
to be anticipated it is well to prepare for. My health is 

' Wilson, vol. iv., page 107. 

' McMaster, vol. iv., pages 314-318. Hatch, vol. ii., pages 319-320. 
Smith, War with Mexico, vol. i., page 67. 
3 Lewis Cass., Am. St. Sr., pages 214-5. 



Attorney General i49 

sound & is not likely to suffer either from the climate or 
from the nature & character of my employment. My 
business in court is in a state of forwardness. By the 
commencement of the term I hope to be pretty well pre- 
pared. The office business is still behind & it will take 
three months I fear to clear the table. That you may 
judge something of it I will remark that the Treas- 
ury Department sent me yesterday seventy two cases 
of land patents for my official examination and cer- 
tificate. 

On Tuesdays & Saturdays of every week I have to 
attend Cabinet meetings which consumes the best business 
portions of those days. 

In addition to this many difficult questions of law are 
submitted to this office by the President or Heads of 
Department or the Solicitor of the Treasury upon which I 
am required to give written opinions. Four such questions 
are now before me — one of great importance & perplexing 
in its character. 

You will see by the multiplicity of my engagements why 
it is that time passes so fast — minutes & hours are not 
counted, — the day is gone before I know it. I can hardly 
stop to eat or sleep lest something should be neglected — 
and yet this active employment seems favourable to my 
health — I am better than when I left home — though 
a little sparer not to hurt 

The newspapers will inform you of the course of the 
administration, of that I must say nothing till we meet 
which I hope may be in March certainly not before. In 
two weeks Congress will assemble & then I must begin in 
the Supreme Court. I should like to see all the children 
but I know they are well off & I am at work for their 
good & that contents me — accept my best wishes 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



150 Life of Nathan Clifford 

The following is quoted from President Polk's diary, 
under date of December 13, 1846: 

Before church hour this morning Mr. Atto. Gen'l Clifford 
called and greatly surprised me by informing me that he had 
prepared his letter of resignation of the office of Attorney Gen'l 
of the U. S., and had called to confer with me on the subject. 
I at once expressed my astonishment to him, and told him I 
should greatly regret it, if he should take such a step. I told 
him that I was entirely satisfied with him, and hoped he would 
retain his place. He read the letter to me, which he had pre- 
pared, but did not offer to deliver it to me. In the letter he 
tendered his resignation, but expressed his approbation in 
unqualified terms of the whole course of my administration; 
and also that his personal relations with me, and with every 
member of the Cabinet, were of the most friendly and agree- 
able character. The letter did not contain the reasons for 
proposing to resign. I understood distinctly, however, from 
his conversation, that he had some apprehensions that, having 
come into the office but a short time before the meeting of the 
Court, he might not be able to sustain himself reputably. It 
seemed to be diffidence in his own capacity, which had induced 
him to think of resigning. I told him if he resigned now it 
would be assumed by his political opponents that he was not 
qualified, & that it would ruin him as a public man. In the 
course of the conversation he dropped a remark to the effect 
that perhaps I had some other person in my mind who could 
perform the duties better than he could. I told him I had not, 
and that if he were to resign it would greatly embarrass me. 
I think Mr. Clifford an honest man and a sincere friend. He 
feels in his new position somewhat timid, fears that he will not 
be able to sustain the reputation of his predecessors, and had 
therefore brought himself to the conclusion that he had better 
resign. He finally concluded not to tender his resignation, and 
retired apparently well satisfied at the interview I held with him. 

The conversation relative to his resignation was held 
before Mr. Clifford's appointment had been confirmed by 
the Senate as the following communication discloses : 



Attorney General 151 

Washington City Dec 23 1846 
My Dear Wife 

I cannot retire tonight without informing you that 
yesterday I made my opening argument in the case U. S. 
vs Bank of United States, ' & today the Senate has con- 
firmed my nomination unanimously — so that now I am 
fully in office. I have had many anxious hours but begin 
to feel more at home. It has worn me down some but my 
spirits & health are good — my best wishes attend you & 
each of the children. I have not yet heard from Charles 
— tell him to write. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

During the months of June and July, 1847, President 
Polk made a journey through the New England States 
going as far as Augusta, Maine. A journal of this trip 
was kept by Mr. John Appleton of Maine, ' Chief Clerk in 
the Navy Department . The President was accompanied 
by Mr. Buchanan and Mr, Clifford. The diary speaks of 
many interesting experiences. On their visit to Portland, 
Maine, the party was greeted by Eliphalet Greely, the 
mayor, and Governor Dana. The President stopped for a 
short time at Miss Jones' boarding house, at the comer 
of Congress and Park Streets on the site of the present 
Lafayette Hotel. After dining at the United States Hotel, 
the party took the steamer Huntress for Hallowell from 
which place they drove to Augusta where the President had 
rooms at the house of Honorable Ruel Williams. The ex- 
cursion from Portland to Augusta consumed seven hours. 

' This was a suit by the United States for a dividend on the stock of 
the old United States Bank owned by the Plaintiff, which the bank refused 
to pay because of a counter claim arising under a local statute. Mr. 
Clifford was successful in causing the decision of the lower court to be 
overruled. 

' This diary has never been published. 



152 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Mrs. Clifford was able to visit her husband during 
the year 1847. While family residence in Washington 
was for them financially impossible still the wife of the 
United States attorney general could afford an occasional 
vacation from household cares. 

Washington City Sept 6 1847 

My Dear Wife 

I received your letter dated in Boston & was much 
gratified to hear of your safe arrival there but was dis- 
appointed this morning in not hearing from you after you 
arrived at home — If you wrote the letter must come to 
hand tomorrow — Mrs. Graham has written you All 
begin to inquire when you will return & are anxious to see 
you — Mr. A Smith ' is sick I fear he may have the bilious 
fever I am in good health Our house is full of boarders — 
I have letters from Charles & Nancy & from Mother Ayer 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

The treaty for the annexation of Texas, which President 
Tyler had submitted to the Senate, failed of passage in 
June, 1844. ^ However the Democratic National Conven- 
tion of that year declared for ' ' the re-occupation of Oregon 
and the re-annexation of Texas at the earliest practicable 
period."^ The choice of Mr. Polk as the presidential 
candidate, a man who was an avowed advocate of this 
course, pledged his party to the poHcy. 

After the election of Mr. Polk, Congress felt that the 
country had shown its feelings regarding the Texas ques- 
tion, and accepting the verdict, it passed a joint resolution 
March 3, 1845, in favor of the admission of Texas. Thus 

' Albert Smith, Rep. to Congress from Maine, 1839-41. 
"Wilson, vol. iv., page no. 
3 Ibid., page 112. 



Attorney General i53 

the union of the two countries was completed by Presi- 
dent Tyler, but it was left to President Polk to deal with 
the consequences. 

The boundaries of the new state presented grave 
questions for settlement. Texas claimed everything 
north and west of her that had been Spain's or Mexico's 
all the way to latitude 42 degrees, ^ and also so much of the 
area of the province of Coahuila as lay between the Nueces 
and the Rio Grande del Norte. 

President Polk supported her claims to territory at the 
south. Before her admission into the union was com- 
pleted, General Zachary Taylor was ordered to occupy the 
western bank of the Nueces with a small force of United 
States troops. During the summer of 1845, reinforce- 
ments were sent to him. Early in the following year he 
was ordered to advance to the Rio Grande. This position 
threatened the Mexican town of Matamoros ; on account of 
which fact he was requested by the Mexican commander 
at that point to withdraw to the Neuces. On his refusal 
to leave the Rio Grande the Mexicans crossed the river 
and fell upon a small party of American dragoons. 
Shortly after this they attacked General Taylor in force 
and were repulsed at Palo Alto. On May 9, 1 846, General 
Taylor assaulted the Mexicans, drove them back across 
the river, and on May 18th, himself crossed the Rio 
Grande and occupied Matamoros. 

On the nth day of May, President Polk made his 
famous announcement to Congress that "war exists, and 
exists by the act of Mexico herself." On September 21st 
and 23d the United States troops captured the town of 
Monterey, which is about one hundred and seventy miles 
west of Matamoros. ^ 

In November of the same year, General Scott, who was 

^ Wilson, vol. iv., page 117. 
' Ibid., page 118. 



154 Life of Nathan Clifford 

at that time the ranking officer in the American army, was 
given command of an expedition sent by sea to attack the 
Mexican City of Vera Cruz. To make up Scott's force, 
that of General Taylor was reduced to about five thousand 
men. On the 22d and 23d of February, 1847, the Mexi- 
can General, Santa Anna, fell upon Taylor as he lay on the 
plain of Buena Vista. Santa Anna was defeated. ' 

Washington City March 27 1847 

My Dear Wife 

I was in hopes to be able to say positively to day when 
I would return but cannot. I think however I shall try 
to get off the first part of next week. 

For some days I have been afflicted with a bad cold. 
Am better to day & all the time have attended the office 
daily. 

We are anxiously expecting news from Mexico to learn 
the fate of the army. We have no reliable information. 

Since writing the above the New Orleans mail has 
arrived the Newspapers are high charged with rumors — 
Gen. Taylor has whipped Santa Anna at Buena Vista 
below Saltillo killing 4000 men & losing 1000. 

The news is not official & therefore may be false. It has 
gained much credit here & I hope it is true — just received 
Nathan's letter. 

I think we must leave Wm. Henry in Maine — however 
we will settle all those matters when I come. 

Probably I shall not write again before I return 
Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

In the meantime the United States soldiers, under 
Gen. Scott, had reached Tampico. Later a landing was 
effected near the city of Vera Cruz, which was surrounded 

' Wilson, vol. iv., pages 119-120. 



Attorney General i55 

and captured. The capital of the country was now the 
goal of the commander. The pass of Cerro Gordo was 
carried, and finally the long march was ended by the fall 
of the fortress of Chapultepec. By the 1 5th of September, 
1847, the City of Mexico was in his hands. ' 
Quoting from Polk's Diary: 

Sunday, Nov. 15, 1846. 

The more I had reflected upon the suggestion made by Mr. 
Buchanan in Cabinet on yesterday that one of the nine Regi- 
ments of volunteers to be called out should be taken from 
Massachusetts, the more favourably I thought of it. I sent for 
the Secretary of War this morning to consult him on the sub- 
ject. He inclined to favour the suggestion, but said it might 
be well to consult Mr. Clifford again before it was decided upon. 
The Secretary left, and I sent for Mr. Clifford. He said he 
thought more favourably of it, than he did on yesterday. It 
was concluded that Mr. Clifford should consult Mr. Burke 
of New Hampshire (the commissioner of Patents) & see me 
again after church to-day. . . . 

At 3 o'clock P.M. Mr. Clifford, the Atto Gen'l called and 
informed me that he had seen Mr. Burke who entirely ap- 
proved the suggestion that one of the Regiments of Volunteers 
should be called from New Hampshire (Massachusetts). If 
she obeyed the call all would be well. If she refused to obey it 
and acted as she did in the last war with Great Brittain the 
country would know it. 

Monday, 23rd August, 1847. 

The attorney Gen'l called this morning on official business, 
and after disposing of it we entered into a conversation about 
the mexican war. He expressed the opinion strongly that I 
should immediately call an additional volunteer force into the 
field ; and also that if the war was not closed before the meeting 
of Congress, it should be prosecuted with the whole strength of 
the nation if necessary. He was utterly opposed to with- 

• Wilson, vol. iv., pages 1 19-120. 



156 Life of Nathan Clifford 

drawing our forces, as destructive of National character & 
interests, as well as destructive of the Democratic party & of 
the administration. He thought there was but one course to 
pursue and that was to fight boldly through, holding all the 
places we have conquered until there is an honorable peace. 
In this respect he differed from the views of Mr. Buchanan as 
several times expressed by him in Cabinet. . . . 

Saturday, 4th September, 1847. 

The Cabinet met at the usual hour to-day ; all the members 
present except the Secretary of War and the Secretary of the 
Navy, who are both absent from the City. After the transac- 
tion of some business of minor importance the Secretary of the 
Treasury, who had been requested at a former meeting to 
examine & Report upon the policy and propriety of levying an 
export duty on specie, as a military contribution in the ports of 
Mexico now in our military possession. He made a verbal 
Report and recommended that an export duty on specie be 
levied of the same amt. which had been levied by the Mexican 
laws before the War commenced. The Post master Gen'l and 
the Atto. General were in favour of the measure. Mr. B uchan- 
an was opposed to it and assigned his reasons at some length 
for his opinion. Mr. Walker enforced his views in favour of the 
measure. The other members of the Cabinet participated in 
the discussion. My opinion had been decidedly in favour of 
the measure and I had so expressed myself. The views pre- 
sented by Mr. Buchanan were plausable, if not sound, and 
struck me with some force. I finally informed the Cabinet 
that I would consider the subject further, and would not de- 
cide the question to-day. . . . 

From the foregoing extracts it is evident that although 
Mr. Clifford was the latest addition to the cabinet of 
President Polk, he nevertheless had the courage to express 
his ideas on the conduct of the Mexican War forcefully. 
He was the chief advocate of a firm and determined course. 
It is also apparent that these views conflicted with the 



Attorney General 157 

opinions of the Secretary of State, who feared to pursue 
the bold and aggressive poHcy suggested by Mr. Clifford. 

The action of the administration, as we have seen, 
was along the lines outlined by the Attorney General, and 
thus it may be stated conservatively that Mr. Clifford 
had great influence in shaping the policy of the United 
States in its conduct of the war with Mexico. 

Mr. Nicholas P. Trist, the chief clerk in the State 
Department, was sent to Mexico as a Commissioner to 
arrive at an agreement with the Mexican government. 
The explanation for this rather unusual proceeding would 
seem to be that Mr. Buchanan, as Secretary of State, was 
not willing to give up to anybody else what glory might 
accrue to him from a successful termination of the Mexican 
difficulties. On the other hand, he did not wish to assume 
the responsibility for a disastrous conclusion of negoti- 
ations. Therefore, it occurred to his somewhat peculiar 
mind' that by using a subordinate he would be able to 
claim the credit of a satisfactory adjustment, and at the 
same time be free to cast the blame of any unfortunate 
result from his own shoulders. 

Mr. Trist was given a draft of a treaty embodying the 
ideas of the administration. He left Washington, April 
16, 1847, shortly after the capture of Vera Cruz. He 
immediately proceeded to the headquarters of the 
army. 

It soon developed that there was not the proper co- 
operation between our envoy and General Scott. ^ The 
bad feeling between them soon ripened into a distinct 
breach. The matter was discussed at considerable length 
in President Polk's cabinet, the recall of both being at one 
time suggested. ^ 

' See Polk's Diary, vol. ii., pages 465-7. The deductions are the present 
writer's. 

» Polk's Diary, vol. iii., pages 62, 63, 76. 
^Ibid., page 77. 



158 Life of Nathan Clifford 

POLK'S DIARY 

September 7th, 1847 

In the course of the discussion The Attorney Gen'l expressed 
the opinion that if an army took possession of the City of 
Mexico, and the Mexicans still refused to make peace, that 
Mr. Trist should be recalled, and that Mexico and the world 
should be informed that we had no further propositions of 
peace to make, and that we should prosecute the War with the 
whole energy of the nation and overrun and subdue the whole 
country, until Mexico herself sued for peace. The Secretary 
of the Treasury expressed his concurrence in these opinions. 
I dissented from the opinion that Mr. Trist should be recalled, 
but concurred with the Atto. Gen'l in his views in all other 
respects. I thought we should still keep our minister with the 
Head Quarters of the army ready to receive any propositions 
of overtures of peace which Mexico might have to make. The 
Post master Gen'l appeared to concur with the Atto. Gen'l 
in his views. The Secretary of State and the Secretary of the 
Navy were not distinct in the expression of their views. It 
was finally concluded to postpone the whole subject until we 
could hear again from the army. 

At length Mr. Trist made intimations to the Mexican 
government which were far in excess of the powers granted 
him. ' This action of Mr. Trist convinced his principals 
that he must come home. ^ Instead of following the orders 
from Washington, he continued to remain in Mexico, and 
eventually negotiated a treaty which was in practical ac- 
cord with his first instructions. ^ The administration was 
now in a very embarrassing position. An agreement had 
been reached, carrying out their views, in most particulars, 
yet it was effected by a person who had no authority at that 
time to act. After lengthy deliberation it was decided to 
submit the document sent home by Mr. Trist to the Senate 

' Polk's Diary, vol. fii., page 196. ' Ibid., page 200. 

3 Ibid., pages 283, 300-1, 347. 



Attorney General i59 

which approved the same with slight amendments, 
March lo, 1848.^ 

After the action of the Senate upon the Mexican treaty, 
it became necessary to select a commissioner with full 
power to exchange ratifications with the Mexican gov- 
ernment on the amended instrument. President Polk 
offered the mission to Louis McLane of Maryland, who 
refused it. ^ It was then tendered to Senator Ambrose H. 
Sevier of Arkansas, who was at the time the chairman of 
the Foreign Relations Committee of the Senate and in 
the full confidence of the administration. ^ Robert M. 
Walsh was secretary of legation. " 

folk's diary 
Friday, 25th February, 1848 

Mr. Clifford, the atto. Gen'l [of the] U. S. called on business. 
In the course of conversation he informed me that after the 
Cabinet broke up on Monday last he had a conversation with 
Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Walker, from which he had serious 
apprehensions that they would both resign their seats in the 
Cabinet. He said if one had resigned both would. He said 
that Mr. Buchanan had accompanied him to his office and 
had conversed with him an hour on the subject. I told him 
there was no danger of such a result. ... I told Mr. 
Clifford that I wished no rupture in my Cabinet, but that I 
must pursue my own convictions and do my duty regardless of 
consequences. I remarked freely to him of Mr. Buchanan's 
inconsistent course on the Mexican Question, an inconsist- 
ency only equally [equalled] by his course on the Oregon 
Question. I expressed to Mr. Clifford an indifference as to 
the course which Mr. Buchanan might think proper to pur- 
sue, but told him there was not the slightest danger of his 
resigning. I was surprised to hear that Mr. Walker had held 
any such conversation. Mr. Clifford requested me not to men- 

I Polk's Diary, vol. iii., page 377. » Ibid., pages 373, 375. 

3 Ibid., pages 379, 380. ■* Ibid., page 382. 



i6o Life of Nathan Clifford 

tion to any one what he had told me, & I told him I would not. 
Mr. Buchanan's real trouble is that he cannot use my adminis- 
tration and shape his course according to his own ever varying 
whims, in order to promote his aspirations to the Presidency. 
He cares nothing for the success or glory of my administration 
further than he can make it subservient to his own political 
aspirations. I sent for Mr. Marcy & Mason to-day and with 
their assistance a despatch was prepared to Gen'l Butler, such 
as I wished the Secretary of War to insert in his despatch of 
yesterday, in relation to Mr. Trist. Indeed it was made 
stronger than that I had suggested on yesterday, and Gen'l 
Butler was directed to require Mr. Trist to leave the Head 
Quarters of the army, and to furnished him an escort to Vera 
Cruz. Mr. Mason fully approved of it. Mr. Marcy expressed 
no opinion, but made some suggestions and prepared a para- 
graph in preparing it. When it was completed I told Mr. 
Marcy I had directed this despatch and was willing to take the 
whole responsibility. I told him to take it to his Department, 
have it copied, and send the copy over to me, and that I 
would examine it again and would address a note to him direct- 
ing him to send it forward, which note he could place on the 
files of the Department as evidence that he had sent it at my 
special direction and that I was responsible for it. Mr. Marcy 
and Mr. Mason retired and I sent for Mr. Buchanan and in- 
formed him what I had done, & that after reading the two 
insulting and highly exceptionable despatches of Mr. Trist 
which he had handed to me on yesterday I felt it to be my duty 
to the country and to myself to take this course. He said he 
could not object to my course, & that after receiving these 
despatches he approved of what I had done. He appeared to 
be in a better temper than he has been for several days past. 
He retired & I went to dinner. After dinner I received the 
despatch, copied by Mr. Marcy and ready for his signature. 
I addressed a note to him approving it and directing him to 
send it forward. In order to save a day by the mail which goes 
round by Baltimore & the Bay, a special messenger was sent 
by the Southern Boat with directions to have it mailed at 
Petersburg, Va. It will probably reach New Orleans before 



Attorney General i6i 

Mr. Freanor, the bearer of despatches, who left last night for 
Mexico, will leave the former City. I have thus done to-day 
what I thought ought to have been done on yesterday. I sent 
for Senator Douglas to-night and had a conversation with 
him about the Mexican Treaty. Mr. Johnson, the P. M. 
Gen'l, came in while we were conversing on the subject. After 
Mr. Douglas left Mr. Johnson expressed the opinion that the 
Treaty was in great danger, from what he had learned, of 
being rejected. He stated, among other things, that it was 
believed in the City that Mr, Buchanan and Mr. Walker were 
exerting their influence to have it rejected. He mentioned 
another astounding fact to me, viz., that it was reported and 
believed that Mr. Walker, the Secretary of the Treasury, had 
joined in a letter to Gen'l Taylor on the subject of the tariff 
and the Constitutional Treasury, and that Mr. Walker was in 
favour of Gen'l Taylor for the Presidency. If this be so, it 
presents the singular spectacle of a member of my Cabinet 
supporting a Whig and an opponent of my administration as 
my successor. If I ascertain this to be the fact it will be incon- 
sistent with the success of my measures for Mr. Walker to 
remain in my Cabinet. I will require strong proof however 
before I can believe it to be true. The truth is that the schem- 
ing and intriguing about the Presidential election, and espe- 
cially by Mr. Buchanan, is seriously embarrassing my adminis- 
tration. 

Friday, 17th March, 1848 

Mr. Johnson called shortly afterwards, when I learned that 
Mr. Sevier was quite ill, so much so that his physician had 
refused to permit any persons to visit him. I saw Mr. Bu- 
chanan on the subject, and decided at once that another com- 
missioner to Mexico must be appointed, with full powers, &c., 
to proceed to Mexico with the Treaty as amended & ratified 
by the Senate. It was a case of emergency and no time was to 
be lost. I thought of Mr. CHfford, the Atto. Gen'l of the U. S., 
as a fit person, and one who was already informed of all my 
views, and told Mr. Buchanan if he would accept of the mis- 
sion I would appoint him. Mr. Buchanan concurred with me 



i62 Life of Nathan Clifford 

in opinion as to Mr. Clifford's fitness. I sent for Mr. Clifford 
and informed him of the emergency which had arisen, and in- 
formed him that I wished him to accept the mission. The 
tender of the mission took him by surprise, but he said if I 
deemed it to be necessary for the public service he would 
accept it. I told him I would appoint him, if Mr. Sevier con- 
tinued so ill as to render it improbable that he could proceed 
to Mexico in two or three days. His attack, I understand, is 
such as he has been subject to, and from which he may recover 
speedily. I sent my Private Secretary to the Capitol to inform 
the chairman of the committee on Foreign affairs of the Senate, 
that in consequence of Mr. Sevier's indisposition, I would 
probably desire to nominate another commissioner to Mexico 
on to-morrow, and to request him to prevail on the Senate not 
to adjourn over until Monday, as I learned they would prob- 
ably do. The Senate is in the habit of adjourning over from 
Thursday or Friday in each week to Monday, when no pressing 
business requires them to be in Session on Saturdays. 

I had a Dinner party today, consisting of about 20 members 
of Congress, and three or four other persons. This was recep- 
tion evening. The usual number of persons, ladies & gentle- 
men, attended. 

Saturday, i8th March, 1848 

This morning the Hon. Mr. Johnson, the brother-in-law 
of Mr. Sevier, and Dr. Hall, his attending physician, called and 
reported to me that Mr. Sevier had been quite ill last night, 
but was better this morning. From Dr. Hall's statement of 
his condition I was satisfied, if he recovered speedily, he could 
not be able to proceed on his mission to Mexico for some days 
to come; and I determined to nominate Mr. Clifford to the 
Senate as an associate commissioner to Mexico, with full diplo- 
matic powers, to act either separately, or jointly with Mr. 
Sevier, if the latter should recover from his illness and be able 
to follow & join him in Mexico. At my request Mr. Buchanan 
waited on Mr. Sevier, and learned from him that Mr. CHfford's 
appointment as associate commissioner would be entirely 
satisfactory to him. I sent for Senator Hannegan, chairman 



Attorney General 163 

of the committee of Foreign affairs, and for Senator Cass, and 
informed them that they might explain to the Senate the 
necessity for the appointment of another commissioner. At 
12 o'clock I sent Mr. Clifford's nomination to the Senate and 
it was immediately confirmed by the Senate. At 5 o'clock 
P. M. Mr. Clifford rode with me in my carriage to Mr. Sevier's 
boarding-house, and [we learned that he was] better than he 
was in the morning. He was perfectly satisfied with Mr. 
CHfford's association with him as a joint commissioner, & 
thought he would be able to follow him in a few days. After 
night Mr. Clifford called, and I held a full conversation with 
him on the subject of his mission and its objects. He handed 
to me his Resignation of the office of Atto. Gen'l of the U. 
States. I informed him that I would not fill the place by a 
permanent appointment, but would make an appointment ad 
interim, in the hope that his absence on his mission might be 
of short duration, and that on his return I would desire him to 
resume the office of Atto. General. Mr. Clifford's appoint- 
ment as commissioner is the best, under all the circumstances, 
which I could have made. He is perfectly familiar with all my 
views, as often discussed in the Cabinet, in relation to the 
Treaty and all its provisions. He is, too, a very discreet, 
sensible man. I[n]deed, upon the happening of the sudden 
illness of Mr. Sevier, and the necessity of despatching another 
commissioner without delay, there is no other person out of my 
Cabinet, who could have been so well prepared to carry out my 
views. Mr. Clifford took leave of me in my office about 10 
O'clock to-night and will proceed on his journey, accompa- 
nied by Mr. Walsh, the Secretary of Legation, to-morrow morn- 
ing at 3 O'clock. He will travel by the Southern route. He 
bears despatches from the War Department to Gen'l Butler 
& the Court of Enquiry in Mexico of which Gen'l Tomson is 
President, and a letter to Gen'l Scott. He also bears des- 
patches from the Secretary of the Navy to Commodore Perry, 
who is in command of the naval squadron in the gulf of Mexico. 

One cannot be surprised at the choice of Mr. Clifford 
for this mission. Being the most • prominent exponent 



164 Life of Nathan Clifford 

in the Cabinet of the poHcy of the administration of a 
firm stand regarding Mexico, his selection was but natural. 
In view of more recent developments in that unhappy 
land, it is interesting to know that he felt the United 
States, at that time, should have taken over the whole 
country as he believed they would be obHged eventually 
to do. 

President Polk said of Mr. CHfford, "He is a safe and 
able lawyer, and I was satisfied with him as a member of 
my cabinet."' 

' Polk's Diary, vol. iii., page 393. 



CHAPTER VIII 
Minister to Mexico 

The account of Mr. Clifford's long and difficult journey 
to Mexico is told fully in his letters which appear here- 
after, but before attempting a perusal of them, the reader 
ought to be made acquainted with some facts about and 
the conditions attending the mission. It should be borne 
in mind that Mr. Clifford went twice to Mexico, the first 
time without any of his family, and again accompanied 
by his wife and two younger sons, the William Henry and 
the George Franklin of the previous letters. At the time 
of his departure, it was supposed that he would simply ex- 
change ratifications on the treaty and immediately return. 
After his arrival, however, he received the appointment as 
Minister to Mexico. As he had not expected to remain 
long away from home, he got permission to come back to 
the United States for his family. This he did in Novem- 
ber, 1848. 

It cannot be doubted that there was considerable real 
danger, even to the American minister, in entering the 
Mexico of 1848. To the country relatives of Mr. Clifford, 
it seemed that he was going to certain death. To a man 
of his age and rearing there was certainly no lure of adven- 
ture in the position. When all the surrounding circum- 
stances are considered, it must be admitted that an ele- 
ment of courage was necessary to the character of one who 
accepted the place of envoy at this time. 

That apprehension was not groundless the two following 
incidents are proof. The narrative of them was told by a 
165 



i66 Life of Nathan Clifford 

son of Mr. Clifford who was a participant in the latter. 
On one of the trips during the first visit, the guards who 
had been ordered to be constantly in attendance on the 
minister's coach had lagged behind. While the party 
was thus deprived of their proper protection, suddenly, 
the leading mules were noticed to stumble and fall, and 
the conveyance was thus brought to a standstill. Im- 
mediately the stage was surrounded by a band of robbers. 
Regardless of the danger, Mr. Clifford opened the door of 
the coach and discharged his pistol at the man who seemed 
to act in the capacity of captain of the gang. This un- 
expected resistance put an end to the purposes of the 
bandits who forthwith withdrew, carrying away their 
wounded leader. 

The other story relates to the period after Mr. and Mrs. 
CHfford had become established in the embassy. They 
were driving one afternoon just outside the city, ac- 
companied by Mr. Hargous, an American merchant re- 
ferred to in the correspondence, and two young ladies on 
horseback. William Henry was riding a pony which had 
been presented to him by Mr. D. W. Seager, one of the 
American residents of Mexico. At a turn of the road some 
distance in front of them were seen a line of brigands 
drawn up across the way. The carriage was stopped and 
a consultation was had. Finally, it was decided that 
the three young people should go ahead and, in the words 
of Mr. Hargous, "ride like Hell," directly in the face of the 
opposing line, leaving their elders to follow along behind to 
watch results. To the surprise of all, as the pony and the two 
saddle horses went tearing down the road abreast, straight 
into the robbers' faces, the line parted, caps were doffed, 
and the whole party, young and old were allowed to pass 
with salutations from the Mexicans. 

It may be asked, "Why did Mr. Clifford go on a mission 
attended with such evident danger, and carrying with it 



Minister to Mexico 167 

the element of uncertainty, even as to the life of the 
holder? " The answer is probably to be found in the fact 
that Mr. Clifford was a very poor man. All the offices 
held by him up to this time had brought in little or no 
money, beyond what had been absolutely necessary for 
the needs of a large and growing family. The proper edu- 
cation of four boys and two girls made demands upon a 
scantily filled exchequer, which, up to the present time 
had been met only with difficulty, and unless some change 
for the better occurred, would be discharged with less ease 
in the future. Here was an opportunity which carried 
with it the hope of something substantial in the way of 
financial recompense, and if availed of with success, might 
lead to better chances later. Acceptance would place 
party leaders under a sense of obligation to one who had 
thus risked his life in the service of his country. 

It has been deemed advisable in presenting to the public 
for the first time the account of Mr. Clifford's mission, to 
let him tell the story, as much as possible, in his own words. 
There is a certain freshness about a first-hand account 
of his experiences which would be entirely lost in an 
attempt at a paraphrase. It is to be regretted that there 
is to be found no family correspondence of the period of 
his second sojourn in Mexico. This is, of course, ac- 
counted for by the fact that his wife and younger children 
were with him, and what letters may have been written 
to the other members of the family were less frequent 
and not so carefully preserved. 

Mobile 25 March 1848 

My Dear Wife 

When I have a little leisure & am less fatigued I will 
endeavour to give you a more minute account of my 
journey to this place than I will be able to do at this time. 
The boat started from Washington between two & three 
o'clock on Sunday morning & passed down the river, I 



i68 Life of Nathan Clifford 

judge about forty miles, when we took the cars & found 
railroad accomodation to Wilmington North Carolina 
where we took the steamboat to Charleston South Carolina. 
On entering the boat we were required to give our names 
ages place of birth & place of residence — This I was 
told is a regulation adopted to comply with the laws of the 
State — We reached Charleston a few minutes past 
nine A M on Sunday in ample season to pass on in the 
regular train for Augusta in Georgia where we arrived 
about six that evening in the midst of a violent thunder 
shower. I got a little wet in waiting to see the baggage 
separated & took a slight cold from which however I feel 
no inconvenience — From Augusta we took the rail road 
that evening for Atlanta in Georgia where we arrived at 
8 o clock Wednesday morning. Leaving that place in one 
half hour after our arrival reached Griffin Georgia at 
twelve o'clock meridian. There w^e were obliged to take 
stages to Auburn (or rather to a village near Auburn dis- 
tance 93 miles) riding all night & until one oclock on 
Monday where we again found a rail road to Montgomery 
in Alabama. About 4 o clock we went on board the Orleans 
St. John at Montgomery on that day & proceeded down 
the Alabama river to this place & arrived here this day 
Saturday at twelve o clock & went immediately on board 
the mail Steamer Oregon where I am now writing this letter. 
She will sail at two oclock & I expect to reach New Orleans 
on Sabbath morn in season for breakfast. The journey 
has been agreeable though tiresome. Coming down the 
Alabama river the boat took fire. It was however 
immediately quenched — It occasioned a little excitement 
— but without the least occasion for it — The river is 
narrow. I could swim it & carry one coward on my back 
if he would lie still — The commander of the Orleans St. 
John is Capt. Myers from Gardiner, Maine, a noble fellow 
& an accomodating gentleman. We have been unusually 



Minister to Mexico 169 

successful in making the journey expeditiously not having 
lost one moment or failed to match the line at any point. 
My health & spirits good. I believe I am in the way of my 
duty & I shall press on with confidence in the guidance & 
support of an overruling Providence — I will close this 
letter at New Orleans & mail it there. 

New Orleans 26 March 1848 
I arrived here at four oclock this morning & have taken 
lodgings at the St. Charles Hotel. Thus far the day has 
been spent in receiving calls. Among the number Gov 
Johnston — Judge Slidell' & all the army & Navy 
officers I believe — at all events I am tired of company. 
My appointment is well received here even by the whigs — 
I shall sail tomorrow about the middle of the day in the 
Massachusetts for Vera Cruz. I do not know when I 
shall write again but will do so as soon as possible — The 
weather is warm. Every one is complaining of the heat 
but myself. I feel no inconvenience — My health is 
good — A little weary but one nights rest will restore me 
— Write to the children & to mother Clifford & assure 
them I am in no danger. I suppose they will not expect 
to see me again — Tell them I am in good spirits & will 
return in two or three months at worst — perhaps much 
sooner & accept the assurance with which I am as ever 
Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

New Orleans 

Hon. James Buchanan, March 26, 1848 

Secretary of State 
Dear Sir: — 

In compliance with your suggestions before I left 
Washington, I have the honor to inform you that I arrived 

' John Slidell, Minister to Mexico to settle our differences with her in 
1846. Negotiation was refused by Mexico. Smith, The War with Mexico, 
vol. i., pages 91-98. 



170 Life of Nathan Clifford 

at this place at four o'clock this morning, accompanied 
by Mr, Walsh, Secretary of the Legation and Lieutenant 
Contee of the U. S. Navy. The journey thus far has been 
an agreeable one because nothing occurred on the way to 
prevent me from travelling as fast as the present means 
of conveyance will allow. The communication entrusted 
to my care, from the War Department to Brigadier Gen- 
eral Brooks, was placed in his hands immediately after my 
arrival. Satisfactory arrangements have already been 
made for my departure for Vera Cruz tomorrow at 3 
o'clock p.m. in the ship Massachusetts. At first I felt 
inclined to select the Endora a small propeller, thinking 
that perhaps the passage could be performed more expedi- 
tiously in her than in the Massachusetts which is a sail 
vessel; but I have yielded my first impression to the 
united advice of the officers at this post in favor of the 
Massachusetts, which is said to be preferable at this season 
of the year both on the score of convenience and speed. 
Though not entirely convinced as to the latter, I have 
deemed it wisest, under the circumstances, to trust to the 
judgment of those who are more experienced in such mat- 
ters than myself. Probably there is not much difference 
in the speed of the two vessels. If the wind is fair, 
I am assured the Massachusetts may reach Vera Cruz in 
seventy two hours. 

I have the honor to be, Sir, with great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford 



Vera Cruz Mexico April 2, 1848 

My Dear Wife 

I arrived here this morning in the ship Massachusetts. 
We anchored near the castle of San Juan de Uloa & 



Minister to Mexico 171 

immediately Com' Perry fired a salute from his flagship 
Cumberland, which made the whole city wake up. After 
receiving visits from the Commodore & Gov. Wilson =* & 
listening awhile to the band I went on shore & am now 
stopping at the House of Mr. Hargous an American 
Merchant. A second salute was fired from the fort & 
this evening the band has visited me & played Sweet Home 
& the Star Spangled Banner — The escort is ready for 
tomorrow when I start for the City of Mexico. I have 
an ambulance to be drawn by four horses & one led horse 
for my use when I shall become tired of riding in the 
ambulance or waggon — • My escort consists of sixty 
mounted men under Capt. Fairchild. Santa Anna ^ is near 
this place under an escort of our troops — This being 
Sabbath the Mexicans paraded the streets in the morning 
& in the afternoon had a bull fight in sight of the House I 
occupy — The town is quiet & apparently under perfect con- 
trol though its police is directed by Mexican authority re- 
stored three days since in consequence of the new armistice. 
We have to buy our own provisions & buy blankets for 
beds on our way up. 

' Commodore M. C. Perry, in command of the American squadron, at 
Vera Cruz. He had superseded Commodore David Conner. Smith, The 
War with Mexico, vol. ii., page 202. 

' Col. Henry Wilson, Governor of Vera Cruz at this time. Smith, 
The War with Mexico, vol. ii., page 457. 

3 Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna had been eliminated from the govern- 
ment of Mexico and was about to sail from what he regarded as an un- 
grateful country. Smith, The War with Mexico, vol. ii., page 182. While 
it is impossible in this book, without transgressing reasonable limits, to 
give a history of events in Mexico from 1 841 up to the time of Mr. Clifford's 
mission, a few facts may render the following correspondence more inter- 
esting. Santa Anna had been dictator in 1841, President in 1844 and then 
deposed. He then left Mexico only to return again and be appointed com- 
mander-in-chief of the army from which position he again assumed the 
chief executive power. Duiing the interim there were several Presidents 
among whom were Paredes and Herrera mentioned in the ensuing letters. 
See Smith, The War with Mexico, vol. i., pages 50-55, vol. ii., pages 80-85. 



172 Life of Nathan Clifford 

I am now twenty -three hundred miles from Washington 
— It is about nine hundred miles across the Gulf — a 
gloomy passage though perfectly safe in our good ship. 
It is pretty warm here which makes me desirous to leave. 
I am told that one day will carry me to a better climate. 
My health is good — I think I am in no danger from 
the climate & there is not the least danger in any other 
sense — I am in good spirits & verily believe that I shall 
be successful. Be of good cheer I will return soon if my 
life is spared. 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Vera Cruz April 2d, 1848 

Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State, 

Dear Sir, 

On Monday the 27th ultimo, I sailed with my suite, 
from New Orleans, in the ship Massachusetts; and this 
morning we arrived here after an agreeable passage. The 
escort for the journey to the City of Mexico will be ready 
tomorrow, when we shall set off. At New Orleans I was 
informed by Mr. Kennedy, one of the officers of the Mint, 
that the archives of the former Legation of the United 
States in Mexico had been deposited with him by Mr. 
Consul Black; and deeming it advisable to have them 
within reach, I brought them with me and placed them 
under the care of Mr. Dimond, our Consul at this place. 
I am happy to be able to state that the opinions of the 
most intelligent persons whom I have met here, would 
authorize the belief that there is every disposition in the 
Mexican Government to ratify the Treaty without delay. 
From Colonel Wilson, the Military Governor of the town, 
I learn that General Santa Anna is now at a village in the 



Minister to Mexico 173 

neighborhood, under an escort of our troops, and is 
expected to embark immediately for the island of 
Jamaica. 

I have the honor to be, Sir, with great respect. 
Your Obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford. 



City Mexico April 13 1848 

My Dear Wife 

I have the satisfaction to apprize you of my safe arrival 
in this City — I reached the suburbs of the city on 
Tuesday last about 1 1 oclock AM & was escorted to the 
city by a detachment of U S Cavalry — Just outside of 
the walls I was met first by Gen Patterson ' to whom had 
been assigned the duty of receiving me & reviewed the 
troops more than four thousand in nurnber. The com- 
manding General Butler^ riding by my side as my personal 
friend. It was the grandest spectacle I ever saw. Hav- 
ing passed through the ceremony of reviewing the troops 
at Puebla I felt quite at home in the business. If I had a 
military dress I might soon pass for a military man. 
After the ceremony of reviewing the troops was over & I 
had been shown to my residence, I accompanied Gen 
Butler to his head quarters & met a large concourse of our 
officers. I occupy a large four story stone dwelling 
House splendidly furnished. Mr. Walsh & one servant 
being my only companions. The door is guarded by 
American troops — The House belongs to Jose Miguel 
Garileay — The street is called ' '2 Calle de la Monterilla. ' ' 
Gen Butler's head quarters are within forty rods of my 
residence — 

' Robert Patterson at one time suggested to command expedition against 
Vera Cruz. Smith, vol. i., page 351. 

' W. O. Butler. He succeeded Scott in command after fall of the City 
of Mexico. Smith, vol. ii., page 188. 



174 Life of Nathan Clifford 

The owner of the House lives in the back part of the 
House entirely separate as much so as if he was in another 
block of buildings — My meals are furnished from a 
Restaurant — 

I left Vera Cruz Monday April 4th in the afternoon & 
arrived here Tuesday the nth under an escort of fifty five 
mounted men — A part of the time we slept in the towns 
not garrisoned by American troops — The escort would 
fall alseep from fatigue but we encountered no danger — 
The friends around me were all armed & had plenty of 
arms for my use — I rode with an unloaded Pistol in my 
trunk finding more arms in my company than could be 
used — first night slept at San Juan — 2nd night at Puente 
National ' — 3rd night at Jalapa 4th night ^t Perote — 5th 
at Ojo de Agua 6th night at Puebla 7th at San Martine 
8th at Ayotla & then at Mexico City — We had to supply 
our own provisions by carrying them with us & our own 
beds a part of the time — The dwelling Houses have no 
fireplaces & the public Houses rarely have more than one 
bed— 

My health is perfectly good & I am in no personal 
danger — Murders occur here very frequently but my 
house is well guarded & we are now well armed. I have 
no fears whatever — I have a good interpreter & begin to 
speak some words of the language. It is some embar- 
rassment not to be able to speak the language — That 
will gradually disappear. Appearances lead me to hope 
I may be successful in which event I hope to return in 
May or June I assume — I expect Mr. Sevier here in 
a few days — Make yourself comfortable & happy 
& give my love to each of the children & believe me as 

ever — 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

' Puente Nacional. 



Minister to Mexico 175 

City of Mexico April 20, 1848 
My Dear Wife 

Since I last wrote you Col. Sevier has joined me & we 
have changed our residence into another street — We 
now board in the House of the gentlemen whose card I en- 
close — His family left the city when war broke out & 
reside at Puebla — We have all of the House that we 
want & are wholly by ourselves — My health is good & 
I think I am in no danger — I wish you to write & direct 
to the City of Mexico & inclose in a blank wrapper to Mr. 
Buchanan & he will forward to me. Appearances indicate 
that we will have to move to Queretaro the present seat of 
government about 120 miles from this city — If we go we 
shall take a small escort of American troops to guard 
against robbers & assassination — I think the Mexican 
army will not play false — I am anxious to hear of your 
safe arrival at home with the children — I verily believe 
we shall be successful in our mission. Mr. Buchanan has 
issued instructions directing me to remain a short time 
after the treaty is ratified but I shall leave for home I think 
in May or June — I cannot consent to be separated from 
you and the children in this wild country for any length of 
time for money or popular favor. We have entered at 
once upon our duties & shall close the matter without 
delay — It is not warmer here than in Washington — 
The bad climate is confined to Vera Cruz — I shall dread 
that place on my return home. The Mexicans keep aloof 
from us & I am not sorry that they do so as I am not 
pleased with them in the least degree — 

Do as well as you can. I trust in God we are not sep- 
arated for a long time but if any thing befalls me I must 
leave you and the children in the hands of a merciful God 
& trust we may all meet in heaven. I assure you I feel no 
concern for myself & am only anxious for the result on the 
account of yourself & the children. Give my love to my 



176 Life of Nathan Clifford 

mother & to mother Ayer. I know they will almost num- 
ber me with the dead — Tell them to be of good cheer. I 
shall return to administer to their wants in their declining 
years. Kiss little ' ' Franky ' ' for me & God bless you all — 
Tell the children to be steady & spend as little as possible. 
I hope to save something considerable in this tour so as to 
better our condition & enable us to live more to our minds 
— In conclusion I assure you my health is good & I do 
not consider myself in the least danger — I shall be pru- 
dent and have no doubt everything at home will be con- 
ducted as well as I could wish. Mr. Sevier, Walsh & 
myself live together & eat at the same table As ever 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

City of Mexico April 27 1848 

My Dear Wife 

When I last wrote you I expected ere this to have been 
in Queretaro the temporary seat of government of the 
Republic. The delay has been occasioned by the un- 
willingness of the Government to allow us to visit them 
under an escort of our troops — They have tendered 
us an escort of Mexican soldiers which, though ours would 
be preferable we shall accept rather than suffer our mission 
to fail — They dare not prove false — It is expected 
that a quorum of their congress will assemble on Monday 
next & I have no doubt the treaty will be ratified by the 
first of June — I forgot to enclose in my last the card of 
our Host — His name is Antonio Horay Tacuba — The 
name of the street — Tacuba No 19 — I have visited 
the battle fields of Churubusco — Molino del Rey & 
Chapultepec & tomorrow I shall visit Contreras. Col 
Sevier & myself have reviewed the troops twice & I had 
once before he arrived — We have given two dinners — 



Minister to Mexico i77 

mostly to American officers Gen Mora y Villamil* & Mr 
Boneila (Mexians) were present — The climate is moder- 
ately warm it is usually fair in the morning & rains every 
afternoon. The nights are quite cool — The City of 
Mexico is situated on a large level plain called table land 
about sixty miles by forty — From the heights of Chapul- 
tepec the whole expanse is open to our view — It is 
surrounded by mountains some of which are covered with 
perpetual snow. At the foot of these mountains it is 
excessively hot while the tops are covered with snow. 
The air is very rarefied & quite oppressive to the head — 
For a few days I felt uncomfortable but am becoming 
accustomed to it. My health is good — The only trouble 
I find is our officers want to show us everything which 
keeps me too much on horseback. It is however good 
exercise. 

The City is built chiefly with stone. The Houses 
generally two stories & a basement. The entrance on the 
street is through a plank door in two parts like the large 
doors of a northern house. A guard placed inside of the 
doors would defend the House against any thing but 
artillery — Every House is a castle — The servants 
generally live on the ground floor — The genteel people 
Hve in the upper story — usually however there is a family 
in every story — The city is well watered by aqueducts 
of cement 75 miles long — The streets are paved with 
rough stone. It has several large churches. Some of 
them cover a whole square like a Philadelphia square not 
quite as large — The Houses have no fireplaces, no 
chimneys. They cook in a furnace — The lower stories 
rarely have any windows — The windows of the upper 
stories extend down to the floor and open in two doors & 

' Smith, War with Mexico, vol. ii., page 135. Ignacio Mora y Villamil. 
He had been placed by Santa Anna on the peace commission to negotiate 
with Trist. 



178 Life of Nathan Clifford 

are protected by plank doors inside instead of shutters — 
When the House is closed one would be perfectly safe 
against rifle Balls or even grape shot — 

The population is mostly Indian & a poor race. These 
stroll about the streets, the women often carrying the 
children in their arms — badly clad & filthy — The 
Mexican women it is said do not walk the streets except 
on a few Holidays in each year. Some of them go to 
church or mass as they call it at a very early Hour in the 
morning generally attended by a waiting woman of the 
Indian race. The Indian race has the red skin like the 
north American Indian — They are of a low stature, 
squalid & generally miserable, ignorant & thievish — The 
Mexican race are generally about the color of the quad- 
roons of the United States — Occasionally one is seen 
that is as white as an American. The number of such 
is as far as I can judge very small. Not one in five 
hundred — They have no schools except in churches — 
The religion is Roman Catholic altogether — The Priests 
wear hats two feet long & turned up on the sides — mostly 
dressed in black, one order in cloth lighter colored than 
that worn by the Quakers. Every man of wealth has a 
coach. They are generally drawn by mules — which 
appear to be preferred to horses — For instance at 
Puebla I was furnished with a coach drawn by six mules 
and two Mexican postillions — one on the right wheel 
mule & the other on the right leader — & away we went at 
a right good rate — The gentry here breakfast at 1 1 A.M. 
dine at 7 P.M. & gamble much of the night — 

We breakfast at yi past 8 & dine at 3 P.M. which is as 
early as we can possibly find a cook to furnish it — No 
one will furnish a breakfast at 8 oclock on account of the 
markets &c — 

The House in which we lived is splendidly furnished — 
Brussels carpet mahogany chairs & every thing to cor- 



Minister to Mexico i79 

respond. Mr. Hora was one of Santa Anna's ministers — 
He has sent his family to Puebla & is Hving alone with his 
servants — I met today Wm. Kelleys son & he has fur- 
nished me with a servant, mine having proved dishonest 
& stole a Pistol from me & about a hundred dollars in 
money — The Pistol I have got back from the man he 
sold it to — It is the one Col. Talcott gave me — The 
money I fear is gone — The way he got the money was the 
day I went to Chapultepec I left my key in my trunk. 
Mr, Kelley assures me that this boy is honest. He is a 
black boy from Boston — I received my shirts having 
previously purchased a dozen in New Orleans. I am 
well supplied — Take good care of yourself & the chil- 
dren & do not be concerned for me — I am in no danger. 
I keep myself well armed & am in the midst of friends all of 
whom are equally well armed. We are just as safe as you 
are. These rascals are mighty fearful of well-armed men 
especially Americans — If we go to Queretaro we shall 
have sixty four picked men under the command of Maj 
Polk. My love to yourself & the children 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

City of Mexico, 

May 7th, 1848 

Hon. James Buchanan 
Secretary of State. 

Sir, 

You will receive herewith copies of the several notes 
addressed by us to the Minister of Foreign Relations, 
and of his answers to the two first, which comprise all the 
correspondence between us to this date. We regret that 
it is not in our power to communicate more definite 
information as to the result of our mission. The delay 
has been occasioned by causes which were not fully under- 



i8o Life of Nathan Clifford 

stood in the United States at the date of our departure 
and over which we have been able to exercise but little 
influence. When we arrived here the deputies had not 
been chosen in this city, and the election was not com- 
pleted until the 23d ultimo. The same remark is appli- 
cable to Puebla and one or two of the other departments. 
The first step taken by Mr. Clifford was to institute an 
informal inquiry of the government at Queretaro, through 
General Mora y Villamil, as to the most acceptable mode 
of announcing the arrival of the commission and of their 
wishes in regard to the place of consultation, if any were 
desired. A verbal answer to this was received on the 
morning after the arrival of Mr. Sevier. Having collected 
the best information as to the wishes of the Government 
we addressed our first note to Sr. Rosa, which led to the 
residue of the correspondence. The preliminaries of our 
contemplated visit to Queretaro are happily arranged, as 
you will perceive ; and we only await the appointment by 
the President of the day of departure. Anxious as we are 
to expedite the business entrusted to our charge, we have 
deemed it unwise to go to Queretaro in anticipation of the 
wishes of the President, who appears to be sincerely in 
favor of peace and, being on the ground, can judge best of 
the fit moment for our arrival at that place. It is under- 
stood that all the members from this city are favorable to 
the ratification of the treaty. Of the four Senators elected 
from this district, two are on their way to the seat of 
government, and the other two, of whom the Archbishop 
is one, leave today. 

Since our arrival here we think we discover a growing 
feeling favorable to the restoration of peace. Thus far 
our presence in this city has been productive of much more 
good than it would have been in our power to accomplish 
at Queretaro in the absence of a quorum of Congress. 
Now that the members from this section have nearly all 



Minister to Mexico iSi 

left, we shall repair to that place as soon as we can do 
so in conformity with the views of the government. It 
is highly probable, however, according to information 
received from General Mora today, that our presence 
there will not be desired until after the ratification of 
the treaty. 

If Congress acts at all, which we are confident it will, 
we have little doubt of the result. Both branches are now 
organized, and the members are entering upon business 
with commendable industry. We are assured that as soon 
as the President is elected, the treaty will be considered. 
It is supposed that Herrera will be chosen, as he has a 
plurality of the votes of the people. The amendments 
made by our Senate do not appear to attract much 
attention, and it is not supposed that they will constitute 
any serious obstacle to the consummation of the treaty. 
While we anticipate that the treaty will be ratified, yet, 
considering the uncertainty which surrounds everything 
in this country, we deem it proper to prepare for the 
reverse. In such event we are of opinion that our presence 
here could not be productive of any good, and would 
request to have leave to return, remarking at the same 
time that we are ready to obey instructions. 

We have the honor to be, Sir. 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

A. H. Sevier 
Nathan Clifford 



City of Mexico, 

April 17, 1848. 

The undersigned Commissioners of the United States 
of America have the honor to apprize His Excellency, 
the Minister of Foreign Relations of the Mexican Republic, 



1 82 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of their arrival in this city, and of their readiness to enter 
upon the duties of their mission so soon as they shall have 
been duly accredited by the Mexican Government. To 
prevent unnecessary delay it is deemed proper to communi- 
cate the information that they are fully authorized to 
exchange the ratification on the part of their Government 
of the treaty between the United States of America and 
the Mexican Republic concluded and signed at Guadalupe 
Hidalgo on the second of February last by the pleni- 
potentiaries of the respective Governments in the form in 
which it has been amended by the Senate of the United 
States, for the like ratification on the part of the Mexican 
Government of the said treaty. They also transmit here- 
with a sealed communication from the Secretary of State 
of the United States addressed to His Excellency the 
Minister, etc., etc., explanatory of the said amendments. 
It is presumed that this communication embraces all the 
information which may be desired by the Mexican Govern- 
ment in regard to the amendments to the treaty of peace. 
If, however, further explanations are wished, the under- 
signed will be prepared to give them promptly to the 
Minister of Foreign Relations or other authorized agents 
of the Mexican Republic at such convenient place as the 
Mexican Government may designate. Wishing to avoid 
all mere questions of form and to enter at once upon the 
subject of their mission, the undersigned inclose herewith 
official copies of their respective letters of credence, the 
originals of which will be delivered in such mode as may be 
agreeable to the President of the Mexican RepubHc. 
Should it become advisable in the opinion of the Mexican 
Government for the undersigned to visit the city of 
Queretaro, they cannot doubt that it will be deemed both 
expedient and proper that they should travel there and 
remain under a protection of a suitable escort of American 
troops. The imdersigned avail themselves of the oppor- 



Minister to Mexico 183 

tunity to tender to His Excellency the expression of their 
distinguished consideration. 

A. H. Sevier 

N. Clifford 
To Senor Don Luis De la Rosa, 

Etc. Etc. Etc. 

There was a considerable correspondence between the 
commissioners and Rosa regarding the escort to be fur- 
nished the former, the latter insisting that the Mexican 
troops were a sufficient protection. It was finally agreed 
however that sixty American dragoons should be in the 
party. 

City Mexico May 21, 1848 

My Dear Wife 

The treaty has passed the chamber of Deputies by a 
vote of 51 to 35 & no doubt will pass the Mexican senate 
within two days — We leave for Queretaro tomorrow 
morning at 7 oclock escorted by sixty Dragoons — In 
ten days you may expect the treaty to be ratified & the 
exchange of ratifications to be completed when Col Sevier 
will leave for the United States & the army will commence 
embarking. It is my intention now to leave with the 
army but cannot fix the precise day — 

My health is good — It will take us four days to go to 
Queretaro & four to return & may have to stay there from 
two to four days. I may now say we are certain of success 
— I think it not improbable there may be some delay in 
embarking the army as there are considerable many sick 
to be carried out in waggons. 

Be of good cheer I will come as soon as possible My 
love to you & the children & believe me as ever during 
life 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 



i84 Life of Nathan Clifford 

City of Queretaro May 26 1848 

My Dear Wife 

I arrived in the city yesterday about four oclock p.m. 
The treaty passed the Senate after we entered the gate of 
the city and before we reached our lodgings by a vote of 
33 to 4. It has now passed both Houses of Congress & 
nothing remains to be done except to exchange the rati- 
fications. Col Sevier was again taken sick yesterday & is 
confined to his bed — today I presented his credentials & 
mine and made a speech of presentation & received the 
speech of the President, Pefia y Pefia, ' in reply — This 
evening I held the official talk with Seiior Rosa the secre- 
tary of State — I have strong hopes that the ratifications 
will be exchanged tomorrow in which case we shall leave 
on our return to Mexico on Sabbath morning — Our 
complete success is perfectly certain — We marched 
into this city (which is 142 miles from Mexico City) with 
sixty dragoons & perfectly astonished the natives — The 
city contains 25 to 30 thousand inhabitants mostly In- 
dians — One of our company who went forward to engage 
our breakfast with two soldiers was fired at by seven 
robbers — The robbers took bad aim & did not hit any 
one — After firing they ran away but when the Mexican 
Diligence arrived they attacked it — and robbed all the 
passengers — It is really a singular country of which I will 
give you a more full account when I return. My health 
is pretty good & I am in good spirits — It took us four 
days to travel from Mexico here & will take the same time 
to return to that place — Give my love to the children & 
all our friends. Tell them not to be concerned about me. 

« The fall of Mexico City had resulted in the destruction of the Mexican 
government. Santa Anna resigned and the republic was left without a 
head. A few of the best and ablest men of the country then proceeded to 
form a government. Among these patriots were Cuevas, Couto and Pefia 
y Pena, the latter being drawn from his retirement and forced to act as 
executive ad interim. — Smith, The War with Mexico, vol. ii., pages 179-80. 



Minister to Mexico 185 

I can take care of myself against all dangers here except 
sickness & that is a matter which Providence controls let 
us be where we may. My love to yourself & believe me 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

City of Queretaro, 

May 30, 1848. 

Hon. James Buchanan 
Secretary of State 

Sir— 

In our last we had the honor to inform you of our arrival 
in this city on the 25th instant. On the following day at 
12 o'clock meridian, in pursuance of a previous arrange- 
ment, Mr. Clifford was presented to the President of the 
Republic by Mr. Rosa, the Secretary of Foreign Relations, 
in presence of the cabinet and a large number of the civil 
and military officers of the government, and placed our 
credentials in the hands of His Excellency. Mr. Sevier 
was prevented by indisposition from being present on the 
occasion. Several conferences afterwards took place 
between Messrs. Rosa, Cuevas and Couto and ourselves, 
which it is not thought necessary to recapitulate, as we 
enclose a copy of the protocol which contains the sub- 
stance of the conversations. We have now the satisfaction 
to announce that the exchange of ratifications was effected 
to-day. Some delay occurred after the confirmus in the 
preparation of the Mexican copy of the treaty. That was 
finally accomplished within the last hour, when the 
exchange of ratifications was duly made by Mr. Rosa in 
behalf of the Mexican Government, and ourselves on the 
part of the United States. 

Having accomplished our duties here, we shall return 
immediately to the City of Mexico for the purpose of pay- 
ing over the three millions according to the stipulations of 



i86 Life of Nathan Clifford 

the treaty. It is expected that the Mexican Government 
will appoint a commissioner to repair to the city in com- 
pany with us, to receive the payment. No circumstances 
are foreseen by us to render it necessary to use the 
papers furnished by the Treasury Department in regard 
to the remaining twelve millions. 

In one of the conferences Mr. Rosa urged with much 
force the dangers of disorder in the City of Mexico in case 
our army should retire before the Mexican authorities 
had taken the necessary precautions. He also expressed 
some fear that their authorities might be interfered with 
by our army should they find it necessary to arrest and 
try certain individuals who, it is said, are plotting the 
overthrow of the Government; and to quiet these appre- 
hensions as far as possible, we addressed a communication 
to General Butler. . . 

We have the honor to remain, Sir, 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servants, 
A. H. Sevier 
Nathan Clifford 

The treaty of peace between Mexico and the United 
States provided for the cession of New Mexico and Upper 
California to the latter upon the payment of fifteen million 
dollars in installments of three million ; the first upon the 
ratification, and the others annually thereafter. ' 

Protocol' 

In the city of Queretaro, on the twenty-sixth of the 
month of May, eighteen hundred and forty-eight at 
a conference between their Excellencies Nathan Clifford 

' Compilation of Treaties in Force, Government Printing Office, page 520. 
^ Ibid., page 525. 



Minister to Mexico 187 

and Ambrose H. Sevier, commissioners of the United 
States of America with full powers from their Government 
to make to the Mexican Republic suitable explanations in 
regard to the amendments which the Senate and Govern- 
ment of the said United States have made in the treaty of 
peace, friendship limits and definitive settlement, between 
the two Republics signed in Guadalupe Hidalgo, on the 
second day of February in the present year; and His 
Excellency Don Luis de la Rosa, Minister of Foreign 
Affairs of the Republic of Mexico; it was agreed after 
adequate conversation respecting the changes alluded to, 
to record in the present protocol the following explanations 
which their aforesaid Excellencies the Commissioners 
gave in the name of their government and in fulfillment of 
the Commission conferred upon them near the Mexican 
Republic : 

1st. The American Government by suppressing the 
IXth article of the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and sub- 
stituting the III article of the treaty of Louisiana did not 
intend to diminish in any way what was agreed upon by 
the aforesaid article IXth in favor of the inhabitants of 
the territories ceded by Mexico. Its understanding is 
that all of that agreement is contained in the III article 
of the treaty of Louisiana. In consequence all the 
privileges and guarantees, civil, political and religious 
which would have been possessed by the inhabitants of 
the ceded territories, if the IXth article of the Treaty had 
been retained, will be enjoyed by them, without any 
differences, under the article which has been substituted. 

2d. The American Government by suppressing the 
Xth article of the Treaty of Guadalupe did not in any 
way intend to annul the grants of land made by Mexico 
in the ceded territories. These grants notwithstanding 
the suppression of the article of the treaty, preserve the 
legal value which they may possess, and the grantees 



i88 Life of Nathan Clifford 

may cause their legitimate [titles] to be acknowledged 
before the American tribunals. 

Conformably to the law of the United States, legitimate 
titles to every description of property, personal or real, 
existing in the ceded territories are those which were 
legitimate titles under the Mexican law in California and 
New Mexico up to the 13th of May 1846 and in Texas up 
to the 2d March 1826. 

3d. The Government of the United States by suppress- 
ing the concluding paragraph of article XII of the Treaty 
did not intend to deprive the Mexican Republic of the free 
and unrestrained faculty of ceding, conveying or transfer- 
ring at any time (as it may judge best) the sum of twelve 
millions of dollars which the same government of U. States 
is to deliver in the places designated by the amended article. 

And these explanations having been accepted by the 
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Mexican Republic, he 
declared in name of his government that with the under- 
standing conveyed by them the same Government would 
proceed to ratify the Treaty of Guadalupe as modified 
by the Senate and Government of the U. States. In testi- 
mony of which, Their Excellencies the aforesaid Com- 
missioners and the Minister have signed and sealed in 
quintuplicate the present protocol. 
(Seal) A. H. Sevier 

(Seal) Nathan Clifford 

(Seal) Luis De La Rosa 

City of Mexico June 4, 1848 

My Dear Wife 

I embrase the occasion of Maj. Polks return to the 
United States to apprize you of my safe return from 
Queretaro to this city yesterday — Peace is concluded 
and the ratifications have been exchanged. Nothing 
remains to be done but to pay over the three Millions 



Minister to Mexico 189 

which will be done in a few days when Col. Sevier will 
return to the United States. Mr. Buchanan has issued 
instructions which compel me to remain for a while — I 
will surely come home before winter & if the election in 
Maine turns favourable much earlier — I know that you 
& the children will be much disappointed & so am I but 
I cannot leave in violation of instructions as it would 
disgrace me. The President sent word by Mr. Sevier 
that he would give me leave to return early in the fall 
even if things went adversely in Maine & earlier if favour- 
able — It will be rather lonely here after the army leaves 
but the path of duty I must pursue — Have no fears for 
me. I am under the protection of the flag of our country 
which under Providence will protect an American minister 
anywhere on the face of the Globe. The principal 
unhappiness I feel arises from the fears that you and our 
dear children will feel alarmed for my safety. I assure 
you I do not apprehend danger. The climate here is quite 
favourable & my health as good as it ever was in my 
life — Mr. Walsh and myself have taken a house & an 
American by the name of Hargous & his friend Wise will 
live with us. In a few days I will write you more fully — 
Accept the assurance that I remain as ever 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

City of Mexico, 
June 27, 1848. 

Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State 

Sir:— 

I embrace the opportunity presented by the departure 
of the bearer, Don Francisco Arangoes, for the United 
States, to say a few words upon the subject of his mission 
and the state of public affairs in this country. Scarcely 



1 90 Life of Nathan Clifford 

had the treaty of peace been ratified when the noted guer- 
illa chief, Padr6 Jarauta, raised the standard of revolt in 
Aguascalientes, with the cry of "War and Death to the 
Americans." It is well understood that he was but the 
instrument of General Paredes, ^ who had been for some- 
time wandering about the northern provinces; and in a 
few days that incendiary threw off the mask, published 
a manifesto denouncing the treaty and the government, 
and marched upon Guanajuato, where there was a large 
accumulation of money and arms, with a band of four 
hundred men. He succeeded in getting possession of the 
town, and drove out the Governor and Legislature who 
refused to countenance his "pronunciamiento." By the 
defection of a part of the troops sent against him, his force 
was increased to some eight hundred followers, and he 
has taken up a position and fortified himself in the neigh- 
borhood of Guanajuato. The states have all declared 
against him, and in some of them the National Guard 
have risen and joined the regular troops under General 
Bustamante, who is to attack him, according to the last 
accounts, today. If the regulars continue faithful, there 
can be little doubt of a favorable result ; but unfortunately 
there is not much dependence to be placed upon them. 
One of the first acts of the present administration was the 
patriotic one of striking a blow at the army, which has ever 
been the curse of the land, but which is still potent for 
mischief and has been generally exasperated by the curtail- 
ment of its privileges. It is hoped, however, that the 
presence of the National Guard and the universal execra- 
tion of Paredes, may keep it in control. A day or two 
more will solve the problem ; and should the government 
be successful, they may be able to sustain themselves and 
afford a chance to this unhappy people to begin a new era 
of tranquillity and improvement. If they fall, chaos is 

' At one time President of Mexico. Smith, vol. i., page 212. 



Minister to Mexico 191 

literally come again ; and it will hardly be possible for the 
United States to avoid being once more embroiled in the 
affairs of Mexico, with what consequences to our country 
it would be futile to predict. Under these circumstances, 
the Government is anxious to obtain such aid from our 
Union as may enable them to ward off the impending 
danger and prevent the disasters which may ensue. The 
details of the arrangement contemplated will be stated 
to you by Sr. Arangoes, and I doubt not that every assist- 
ance which the President may deem himself authorized 
to grant, will be promptly and cheerfully given. The 
present crisis is the turning point in the fate of this country 
and, for good or evil, its results will be permanently 
operative. 

Without any definite knowledge either of the precise 
character or of the extent of the powers entrusted to Sr. 
Arangoes, I understand generally from the Minister of 
Foreign Relations, that he is authorized and instructed to 
negotiate an arrangement with the United States for a 
military force of four thousand men, to be placed under 
the direction of this government, to aid in suppressing 
insurrection and rebellion as well as to protect the white 
inhabitants from the horrors of Indian massacres to which, 
in several places, they are now exposed. The proposition 
is an important one and well deserving, as it seems to me, 
the favorable consideration of yourself and the President. 
Tom by factions and demoralized by a long series of re- 
volutions, and experiencing severely the consequences of 
the war with the United States now happily terminated, 
Mexico must have assistance for a time to enable her to 
reanimate the patriotism of her people and, in the mean- 
while, to preserve public order, and even her very nation- 
ality, from the evil machinations of the reckless and 
treasonable ambition of some of her military chieftains. 
The present Government which is worthy of the con- 



192 Life of Nathan Clifford 

fidence of the United States, needs assistance, and must 
have it, I fear, to meet with success all the difficulties and 
embarrassments with which it is surrounded, and to fulfill 
the just expectations of those who have placed it in power. 
If that assistance cannot be obtained in the United States, 
to which General Herrera ' is first inclined to look as to a 
sister Republic, I think it highly probable that it may be 
sought wherever it may be found. It will be borne in mind 
that the present administration is republican in the strict- 
est sense, and the first constitutional government that 
Mexico has enjoyed for many years. General Paredes 
who is plotting its overthrow, is a monarchist in principle 
and an enemy, I believe, to all free institutions. Should 
he succeed, destitute as he is of administrative qualifi- 
cations and attainments, it is not supposed that any 
administration he may form will be able to stand for any 
considerable time. The consequences will be that rev- 
olution will succeed revolution, rendering life and 
property insecure, and prostrating the best interests of 
commerce and everything like social order, until the 
impulses of humanity shall compel foreign nations to come 
to the relief of the country. 

I have the honor to be, Sir, 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 
Nathan Clifford 



Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State. 



City of Mexico, 
July 25, 1848. 



Sir:— 

I deem it my duty to apprize you that the signs of the 
times in this country are growing daily more inauspicious 

' Supported Pefia. Later President. Smith, vol. ii., pages 179-180, 252. 



Minister to Mexico 193 

for the present government of the Republic. Its best 
friends begin to entertain most serious apprehensions that 
it may not be able much longer to hold out against the 
combinations which are forming with a view to its over- 
throw. Two attempts at revolution have recently been 
detected in this capital, in the last of which, it is said, 
the conspirators well nigh succeeded in their plan for 
seizing the President and the members of his cabinet. 
It is understood that Colonel Riley was engaged in this 
last attempt, and the scheme was defeated through the 
disclosures of some of the men of his command. He was 
immediately arrested and is now in confinement. The 
result of the affair at Guanajuato falls greatly behind 
the expectations of all the well wishers of the present 
government. It was quite too bloodless to have much 
beneficial effect either in strengthening the hands of the 
dominant party or in allaying the hopes or exciting the 
fears of its opponents. True it is that Jarauta was taken 
prisoner and shot, for which all good men rejoice; but 
Paredes who is far more dangerous as a rallying point of 
rebellion, was permitted to escape with all his force, leav- 
ing upon the field, according to the best information I can 
obtain, the beggarly number of one killed and two 
wounded. Considering that the national treasury has 
been so recently replenished from the fruits of the treaty of 
peace, and that the government has applied all its energies 
to the expedition, the result has occasioned very great 
disappointment and almost universal chagrin. All inquire 
what may not be expected after the lapse of a few months 
when the government will find itself with an empty 
treasury and destitute of the means not only for increasing 
its present military force, but of supporting that which it 
now has in the field. 

In view of all the circumstances, I consider it proper to 
ask the instructions of the President as to the course he 



194 Life of Nathan Clifford 

would desire me to pursue in case the present adminis- 
tration should be overthrown and the government fall into 
the hands of some military usurper. It would present a 
question which I should be unwilling to decide without 
advice from him. Should such an event unfortunately 
occur before such advice can be obtained, it is highly 
probable that I shall regard it to be my duty to await your 
instructions. . . . 

I have the honor to be, Sir, 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford 

City of Mexico, 

Aug. 8, 1848. 

Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State. 

Sir:— 

I have the honor to enclose a copy of a confidential 
communication addressed to me by the Minister of 
Foreign Relations under date of the 6th instant, and to 
request in his behalf that you will embrace an early 
opportunity to lay it before the President. The object 
of the communication is to open negotiations for an 
arrangement by which the Mexican Government may be 
enabled to realize the next two instalments of the treaty 
of peace before the time when they will fall due by the 
terms of the treaty. The state of their public finances 
renders some such arrangement not only highly desirable 
to them but perhaps indispensable, to enable them to 
carry on the government. After receiving a pretty full 
account of this present situation I have consented, in view 
of all the circumstances and especially of the peculiar 
emergency in which the government finds itself at the close 
of the war, to transmit the proposition to you and to 



Minister to Mexico i95 

recommend it to the favorable consideration of the Presi- 
dent. I cannot doubt that I will be justified in embracing 
the occasion to add one or two reflections to those hereto- 
fore suggested, in support of my view that it is the true 
policy of the United States under existing circumstances 
to cultivate the most friendly relations with the present 
Government of this Republic. The policy is recom- 
mended, as it seems to me, not only as an act of justice 
to those who have had the responsibility in ratifying the 
peace, but by every proper consideration connected with 
the prosperity and welfare of both countries. The present 
administration truly represents that class of opinion that 
made and consummated the peace, and is disposed to ful- 
fill the stipulations of the treaty in good faith. The gov- 
ernment being fully organized and duly constituted in all 
the branches, it cannot be overthrown without trampling 
under foot the Constitution of the country and annihi- 
lating in my opinion, all hope of republicanism in Mexico 
for many years to come. The United States have nothing 
to expect, either on the score of good will or of commercial 
advancement from those who desire its downfall, or from 
any system which they may build up upon the ruins of the 
Constitution of 1824. While there is nothing good to be 
expected from the plotters of rebellion, it is far otherwise 
with those now in power. Should the present government 
be able to sustain itself, I have reason to believe that Mr. 
Otero will be found ready to negotiate with the United 
States upon liberal terms for new commercial regulations 
and other matter, whenever I may find myself authorized 
to propose these subjects for his consideration. It is also 
the intention of President Herrera, I learn, to recommend 
to Congress important improvements with respect to their 
domestic policy, which, if adopted will assimilate the 
institutions of the Republic more nearly to those of the 
United States. He appears to be deeply impressed with 



196 Life of Nathan Clifford 

the nature of our institutions, and is sincerely desirous, I 
think, of copying them as far as he can be sustained by 
the pubHc sentiment and the Hmited enUghtenment of 
the people. It is true that the national prejudice towards 
our country is somewhat inveterate but it is a source of 
gratification to be able to say that I perceive already 
some evidence that it is giving way in quarters well calcu- 
lated to exercise a beneficial influence upon the future 
intercourse between the two countries. 

Should the President be inclined to accede to the pro- 
posal in whole or in part it will be received by the govern- 
ment here as an act of national liberality and favor, and 
cannot fail, I think, to have a good effect in allaying 
the animosities of the people and strengthening the bonds 
of peace. Knowing the sensitiveness of the Mexican 
people in regard to every thing connected with their 
foreign relations, you will pardon me, I presume, for sug- 
gesting that no publicity ought to be given to the matter 
if the President should find it to be his duty to decline the 
proposition either from want of power or for any other 
cause. No doubt you will agree with me that if we cannot 
aid them, we can at least avoid doing them injury. 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford 

City of Mexico 

September 13, 1848. 

Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State 

Sir:— 

The state of public affairs in this country remains 
without any perceptible change since the date of my 
former despatch in which I had the honor to make some 
allusion to the subject. Notwithstanding the city is 



Minister to Mexico i97 

constantly filled with rumors of revolutions and with 
reports anticipating the return of General Santa Anna, the 
Government of President Herrera is still in power with 
about the same prospects of continued success that it had 
at the departure of the army of the United States. It 
is difficult, however, to predict in advance what a day may 
bring forth. The Minister of the Hacienda, Mr. Riva 
Palacio, resigned some two weeks since and his place was 
supplied by Antonio de Icaza who, after remaining in 
office for a short time, voluntarily retired, leaving the 
department for several days without a head. Seiior Don 
Manuel Pina y Cuevas was nominated and confirmed on 
Saturday last, and has since been duly installed into office. 

The nomination of Luis de la Rosa as Envoy Extraor- 
dinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States 
is now pending before the Chamber of Senators. Should 
his nomination be confirmed he may be expected in 
Washington in the course of the ensuing November. We 
are without news from the United States, there having 
been no arrivals since the departure of the army. The 
British mail, which has been due for several days, is hourly 
expected, when I hope to receive despatches. 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford 

Department of State, 
Washington, 

7th, August 1848. 

To N. Clifford, Esquire, 
Etc., etc., etc. 

Sir:— 

The despatches from your Legation to No. 19 inclusive, have 
been received. 

The President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate, has appointed you Envoy Extraordinary and Minister 



198 Life of Nathan Clifford 

Plenipotentiary to the Mexican Republic. I herewith trans- 
mit your commission with a sealed letter of credence to the 
President of that Republic and an open copy of the same. 
You will communicate the copy to the Minister for Foreign 
Affairs with a note requesting him to inform you when you may 
present the original to the President in person. After you 
shall have been received by the Mexican Government under 
your new commission, the President is willing that you shall 
visit the United States in compliance with the request con- 
tained in your number i6. The time of your departure from 
Mexico is left to your own discretion, in view of the important 
interests intrusted to your charge. You will present Mr. 
Walsh to the Minister for Foreign Affairs as Charge d'Affaires 
ad interim. 

The President knows that you will absent yourself from your 
post no longer than may be consistent with your duty to make 
"suitable provision for the permanent comfort and happiness 
of your family." There has been as you are aware no period 
in the history of our relations with Mexico when it was more 
important than at the present moment to havq our country 
ably represented at the capital of that Republic. The 
irritation of feeling arising out of the late and to the Mexicans 
disastrous war, ought to be soothed; the machinations of 
foreign governments injurious to the United States ought to 
be counteracted, and the Mexican Government ought to be 
persuaded to abandon their absurd and unreasonable tariff. 
These are important objects of your mission, requiring your 
personal attention. If you can succeed in accomplishing 
them, you will acquire and deserve the gratitude of your 
country. 

In the present distracted state of Mexico, the Department 
will expect to learn regularly the progress of events from your 
Legation, and you will enjoin the performance of this duty on 
Mr. Walsh during your absence. 

Your despatch No. 14 of the 27th June, was not received 
from Sefior Arrangoiz, until the 3d instant. On the same 
day he called at the Department, presented his credentials 
and informed me of the object of his mission. He said it was 



Minister to Mexico i99 

the desire of the Mexican Government that the United States 
should furnish to Mexico three or four thousand troops, to be 
employed, in the first place, against the Indians of Yucatan, 
and if need be, against the Indians of other portions of Mexico. 
In case of necessity, they would, also, be employed to sustain 
the present government against revolutionists. He proposes 
that they should receive from Mexico the same pay and rations 
as troops of the United States, and in all other respects should 
be placed on the same footing, and is willing that the next 
instalment of three milHons under the Treaty due on the 30th 
day May 1849, should be applied to this purpose. 

His verbal propositions have been submitted to the Presi- 
dent in Cabinet Council, and after full consideration they were 
decided to be impracticable. Such an arrangement, in order 
to bind Mexico, must assume the form of a Treaty and be 
submitted to the Senate ; and it is very certain that two thirds 
of that body would not at present advise and consent to its 
ratification. But even if their concurrence were probable, 
there is not now time before the close of the session (Monday 
the 14th instant) to have the question discussed and decided 
by that body. 

The President himself, as you are aware, does not possess 
the power to employ the army beyond the limits of the United 
States, in aid of a foreign country, without the sanction of the 
Treaty making or war making power : and it is morally certain 
that neither the one nor the other could be obtained under 
existing circumstances. 

Besides, to employ the army in this manner would be con- 
trary to our established policy not to interfere in the domestic 
concerns of foreign nations, and this ought not to be violated 
unless under extraordinary circumstances. 

Even if all other difficulties could be overcome, Congress 
would have to raise additional troops for the purpose. The 
present army of the United States since the discharge of the 
ten regiments and the volunteers, is barely sufficient for the 
necessary service at home. 

I have this morning had a conversation with Seiior Arrangoiz 
and communicated to him these views of the President on the 



200 Life of Nathan Clifford 

subject of his mission. He appeared to be satisfied that it was 
impossible to accompHsh the object during the present session 
of Congress ; but he expressed a hope that something might be 
done at the next session in case the situation of Mexico should 
then require our aid. 

The President and the people of the United States sincerely 
desire to maintain the most amicable relations with Mexico. 
They cordially wish that the present government may be 
able to sustain itself against its enemies, and they deprecate 
the success of Paredes. This would again commence the 
unfortunate career of revolution which Mexico has so long 
pursued with such disastrous consequences, and I fear would 
end in dismemberment and total anarchy. The pacific and 
eminently patriotic character of President Herrera affords a 
sure pledge for the prosperity of Mexico, should he be able 
to retain his power, and all our feelings are enlisted in his 
favor. It is therefore with painful reluctance that the Presi- 
dent feels himself constrained to decline his request, at least 
for the present. You are instructed to explain in the most 
friendly manner the reasons of this refiisal, and make them as 
acceptable as possible. It is hoped from the news received 
this morning of the defeat of Parades and the capture and 
execution of Jarauta, that Mexico may not require foreign 
aid. 

I am, Sir, very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 
James Buchanan. 

Legation of the United States 
City of Mexico, 

October 3, 1848. 

Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State. 

Sir:— 

I had the honor to receive your despatches numbered 
from 2 to 5 inclusive, on the 27th ultimo. Those en- 
trusted to Mr. Arangois were delayed in New Orleans, I 



Minister to Mexico 201 

understand, in consequence of his failure to secure a pas- 
sage in the British Packet. The one enclosing my com- 
mission and other documents which you caused to be 
forwarded to the British Consul in New Orleans, was 
doubtless detained for a similar reason. The packages 
came to hand unbroken and, of course, bringing all their 
enclosures. Your despatch No. i has never been received, 
the series commencing with No. 2 enclosing my com- 
mission. I have to tender my sincere acknowledgments 
to the President, not only for the permission he has given 
me to visit the United States, but for the very acceptable 
terms on which the leave has been granted. Considering 
the generous confidence he has reposed in me, I do not feel 
at liberty to embrace the offer while there is anything 
remaining for me to do requiring my immediate personal 
attention. It is scarcely possible that I can be ready to 
start much before the first day of November. The first 
intimation that my request had been granted, was re- 
ceived from Commander Carpenter, to whose letter 
communicating the fact I immediately replied. . . . 
... In pursuance of the arrangement indicated in 
the last note, I presented my letter of credence yesterday 
to President Herrera in a public audience held for the 
purpose, and was received in a manner entirely satisfac- 
tory. Immediately after my reception, I delivered the let- 
ter from the President, which was accepted by General 
Herrera apparently with much satisfaction. This letter 
came to hand in a good time, and will have a bene- 
ficial influence in allaying the groundless suspicions which 
had been created in the public mind by the periodicals 
of both countries. . . . The opportunity was gladly 
embraced by me to give assurances which appear to be 
satisfactory. The importance of these assurances will 
doubtless be appreciated, when I inform you that the 
Mexican Government are now deliberating upon a 



203 Life of Nathan Clifford 

revision of their tariff, with a fair prospect of a good 
result. I enclose a copy of my remarks on presenting my 
letter of credence, as well as of those made by me on 
delivering the letter of the President — also copies of the 
replies of President Herrera. 

In a day or two I will make the explanation to Mr. 
Otero in obedience to your instruction, and make known 
to you the result of the conference by the first oppor- 
tunity. No doubt is entertained that they will be satis- 
factory . The commissions of the newly appointed Consuls 
were duly received, and the matter shall be prompt- 
ly arranged. ... 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford 



City of Mexico, 
October 4, 1848. 

Dear Sir: — 

Should my remarks on presenting my credentials and 
the President's letter, in the double translation to which 
they will be subjected before they reach Washington, meet 
with the fate that befell those made by me, in the name of 
the Diplomatic Corps I must beg of you to cause them to 
be published in a correct version. On that occasion in 
speaking of the climate, soil and productions of Mexico I 
characterized the country as "a garden spot of the earth" 
which is not very far from the truth. When the remarks 
reached the United States, amongst several other errors, 
the word "paradise" was substituted for "garden" which 
is not quite synonymous in modern times. The newspaper 
here rendered "garden spot" by the Spanish word "par- 
aiso'' which is certainly not a good translation. The 
word has at least two significations: I. Paradise, 2. 



Minister to Mexico 203 

any delightful place. The translator used it probably in the 
second meaning. 

When the remarks were reproduced into English in the 
United States the translator adopted the first meaning, 
and thus I was made to have spoken of Mexico as "the 
paradise of the Earth" which I fear may not be believed. 

Very respectfully, 

Nathan Clifford 

Legation of the United States, 
Mexico, 

October 13, 1848. 

Hon, James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State. 

Sir:— 

. . The initiative of a law for the appointment of a 
Commissioner and Surveyor to run and mark the line 
between the United States and Mexico under the treaty of 
peace, is now before the Mexican Congress with a fair 
prospect of its passage during the present session, which 
will close on the 25th instant. It is the opinion of Mr. 
Otero that the Commissioners of the two countries ought 
to assemble at the post of San Diego in the month of 
February next, which he regards as by far the most 
favorable month in the year to commence the opera- 
tions. 

It is my intention to start for the United States on the 
first day of November. The Mexican Minister, Mr. Luis 
de la Rosa, will accompany me. We hope to reach Wash- 
ington about the i6th or i8th of the month. Additional 
correspondence between Commander Carpenter and myself 
is enclosed. 

With great respect. 

Your obedient servant, 

Nathan Clifford 



204 Life of Nathan Clifford 

U. S. Steamer Iris, 

Off Sacrificios, 

_ October i, 1848. 

Sir:— 

I am honored by your communication of the 26th ultimo 
and am happy to say that I know of nothing to prevent my 
waiting for you during the designated period. The only thing 
is the season, and I ought to inform you that while this vessel 
is new and perfectly seaworthy in every other respect, we are 
prohibited from carrying more than 10 pounds of steam by the 
defective condition of the boilers. 

The boilers were repaired before I took command in May 
and have not undergone the slightest change since, so that I am 
warranted in saying that, for the above amount of steam they are 
perfectly safe. The only difficulty would be that with heavy head 
winds likely to prevail more and more at this season, we should 
be liable to a long and necessarily anxious passage. 

It will afford me the greatest pleasure to receive His Excel- 
lency Sr. Rosa on board and family, and to extend to them all 
the accommodation in my power. In some respects the Iris 
is very well fitted for their comfort and convenience, but they 
must bear in mind that she is not one of our regular vessels, and 
make allowances for what may fall short of their expectations. 

I cannot think that the public service will suffer the least 
detriment from the proposed arrangement and hoping to hear 
from you soon again, 

I am etc. etc. E. W. Carpenter. 

Hon. N. Clifford, 
Etc. etc., etc. 

Mr. Clifford arrived in New Orleans on his way home 
November 15, 1848. The presidential elections had gone 
against his friends. Lewis Cass, the Democratic nominee, 
had been defeated by Gen. Taylor, the hero of Buena 
Vista. This meant that Mr. Clifford's stay in Mexico 
after his return must needs be short. 

In December, 1848, he was again on his way to the land 
of the Aztecs. 



Minister to Mexico 205 

Pensacola (Florida) Jany 8, 1849 

My dear Daughter 

You will see by the date of my letter that we are still 
in the United States. We remained two days in New 
York and two in Washington & consequently did not 
reach Mobile in season to proceed to New Orleans in time 
to take passage in the British Parkuet. Accordingly I 
turned aside to this place which is perfectly healthy & 
entirely free of the cholera. We shall take passage in the 
Walker the latter part of this week for Vera Cruz — It 
is said to be a very safe steamer. We have three gentle- 
men and two ladies in our company Mr. Gallagher & wife 
his brother & sister and Mr. Bolton. Your mother & the 
children are in good health. At Montgomery we went on 
board a boat which had the cholera in it but immediately 
left it as soon as the capt informed us that the disease was 
among the crew — We afterwards learned that three 
died on the passage to Mobile — We remained but one 
night in Mobile when we took passage for this place which 
is as healthy as Newfield. 

Saturday we visited the Navy yard and were received 
and entertained in a very appropriate manner 

Henry & Franklin are very happy & in better health than 
when we left — I think you and Fanny must be happy — 

Write Charles & Nathan & to Newfield & tell them we 
are in good health & spirits — 

Your father, 

Nathan Clifford 

Pensacola, 

January 9, 1849. 

Hon. James Buchanan, 

Etc., etc., etc. 
Sir:— 

I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your 
despatches Nos. 8 and 9 together with the enclosures. 



206 Life of Nathan Clifford 

The packages came safely to hand by the last mail from 
New Orleans, having been forwarded, I presume, by the 
Postmaster of that city. The perusal of their contents 
has very much increased my anxiety to hasten back to my 
station. You will notice by the commencement of this 
communication that I am still in the United States and I 
am sorry to add, with little or no prospect of being able to 
embark before the latter part of this week, and deeply 
mortified at my detention and anticipating that it will be 
a subject of regret to the President, I deem it proper to 
state very briefly the circumstances which have led to it, 
from which you will perceive that the delay has resulted 
from causes beyond my control, and was in the strictest 
sense unavoidable on my part, without having exposed 
my wife and children to dangers which no man of common 
prudence would ever consent to do. When I reached the 
Alabama River I found that the Steamer Montgomery was 
the only one in readiness to receive passengers for Mobile. 
She had just arrived from that city, and during her trip up 
that river one of her passengers had died of the cholera. 
The newspapers represented the cholera to be very pre- 
valent in New Orleans, and according to some accounts it 
had commenced its ravages in Mobile. The alarm prevail- 
ing in the place rendered it difficult to collect any very 
satisfactory information in regard to the condition of the 
Montgomery. In this respect I was much indebted to the 
politeness of Walker Anderson Esq. of this place. The 
result was that Mr. Anderson and myself determined to 
proceed to Mobile. But shortly after we entered the 
boat, Capt. Johnson came forward and informed us that 
the cholera had again broken out on board and that one of 
her crew was then under the charge of an eminent physi- 
cian who entertained no doubt that the disease was the 
Asiatic cholera. My family appearing to be somewhat 
alarmed, I thought it my duty to return to the public 



Minister to Mexico 207 

hotel from which I had taken them somewhat against the 
opinion of the circle with which I was surrounded. Hav- 
ing since learned that three persons died on board the 
Montgomery during that trip I feel no regret for the course 
which I pursued. Whether the disease be contagious or 
not, I could not feel justified in submitting my family to 
such an immediate contact with it, while the means 
remained available to avoid the exposure. We took pas- 
sage in the next boat, the Orleans St. John which did not 
reach Mobile till the morning of the 31st ultimo too late to 
think of proceeding to New Orleans with any view of a 
passage in the British packet. 

Having thus failed to arrive in time to secure passage in 
the British packet, I had hoped to be able to avail myself 
of the authority given me by the Secretary of the Treasury 
to employ the Revenue Cutter Walcott to convey myself 
and family across the Gulf. But unfortunately the Wal- 
cott turned out to be wholly unseaworthy for a voyage to 
Vera Cruz at this season of the year. She is a small 
schooner of 85 tons only, built in 1828, with some of her 
timber in a state of decay, and at the present time in a bad 
state of repair even for the purposes for which she is 
generally employed. Her officers, though ready to obey 
any order I might deliver to their Commander, were 
unanimously of opinion that the voyage if undertaken 
must be attended with very considerable hazard. Some 
of them expressed the opinion that if they should be 
successful in reaching Vera Cruz the return voyage could 
not be made short of a month. Every person with whom 
I consulted advised me not to attempt to cross the Gulf in 
the Walcott. In view of all the circumstances and acting 
upon the best advice I could obtain, I determined to 
embark for this place and fall back upon the contingent 
instructions given by the Secretary of the Navy to Com. 
Newton who is in command at the Navy Yard. In 



2o8 Life of Nathan Clifford 

determining upon this course I was much influenced by the 
enclosed letter from Com. Newton addressed to the 
Collector of the Port of Mobile, which he very politely 
placed in my hands the morning after my arrival in that 
place. Upon the receipt of this letter and by the advice 
of Mr. Saunders I immediately crossed over to the east 
side of the Mobile Bay with a view to take passage in the 
Walcott for this place and after considerable detention 
which it is unnecessary to explain, arrived here on Friday 
last perfectly convinced by my own observations of the 
unfitness of the Walcott, for a voyage at this season of the 
year across the Gulf. There being no vessel of war at 
this station and no reliable information where one may be 
expected Com. Newton has determined very properly, I 
hope you will think, to send me to Vera Cruz in the Steamer 
Walker. The Walker, I believe, is at the present time 
attached to the coast survey. She is a fine steamer, appar- 
ently of about 400 tons, staunch and new and in good 
repair and will be ready for sea during the week. While I 
was at Washington Mr. Walker expressed much regret 
that he could not afford me a passage in that steamer at 
the same time, remarking that it was the one I ought to 
have and that he only forbore to issue the necessary in- 
structions as, I believe, because he supposed her repairs 
had not been completed. Recollecting the conversation 
I ventured to assure Com. Newton that should he decide 
to send me out in the Walker his conduct would be un- 
questionably approved. Will you do me the favor to 
mention the subject to Mr. Walker who, I am sure, will 
take pleasure in adopting the necessary measures to guard 
Com. Newton against the possibility of censure. Enter- 
taining no doubt that Mr. Walker would have given me 
authority for this steamer instead of the Walcott, if he 
had anticipated that her repairs would have been com- 
pleted in season for my purpose, I felt no hesitation 



Minister to Mexico 209 

whatever in giving the assurance before spoken of to Com. 
Newton. Under the circumstances I trust that my course 
may be approved by the President. Be assured that the 
residue of my journey will be performed with all the 
despatch in my power to employ. 

N. Clifford 



Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 

Feb. 13, 1849. 

Hon. James Buchanan, 
Secretary of State. 

Sir:— 

I have delayed informing you of my arrival in this 
city until now, for the want of any reliable means of trans- 
mitting letters to the United States. I reached here on 
the 30th ultimo with my family, who, I am happy to say, 
are in perfect health. Notwithstanding the repairs of 
the W^alker were completed about the time indicated in my 
letter of the 9th ultimo, my stay at Pensacola was pro- 
tracted a few days longer than I had anticipated in con- 
sequence of unfavorable weather, which, in the opinion of 
her officers, rendered it inexpedient to attempt to cross 
the bar. We left the Navy Yard on the i6th and reached 
the anchorage at Sacrificios in six days and six hours, 
making one of the most pleasant voyages I have ever 
experienced in crossing the Gulf. It was in a measure 
the experimental trip of the Walker, and in my judgment 
it proves her to be a good sea vessel for one of her class. 
When her machinery has been longer used I have no doubt 
her speed may be considerably increased. During the 
last twelve hours before reaching Sacrificios the wind blew 
very fresh from the North, causing the waves several times 
to break over the wheel-house, and yet she rode out the gale 



210 Life of Nathan Clifford 

not only without danger, but without causing any alarm 
to the passengers. The wind continuing to blow, it was 
found impossible to effect our landing, which was not 
accomplished until the morning of the 24th. While we 
were lying at Sacrificios the United States Sloop of War 
Saratoga came in from a cruise and anchored alongside 
the Walker. Of course the usual civilities among the 
officers were exchanged, and I take great pleasure in 
remarking that I was much indebted to Captain Nicholson 
and his officers for various acts of hospitality and kindness 
during our unexpected sojourn at that anchorage. The 
officers of both vessels accompanied me on shore, and 
escorted me with my family to the house of the American 
Consul. The usual salute was fired from the Castle of 
San Juan de Uloa and promptly returned from the 
Saratoga. 

At Vera Cruz I found that the necessary arrangements 
had already been made for my journey to this city, in 
anticipation of my arrival. The customary order of the 
Mexican Government providing an escort for the road, had 
been waiting my arrival for ten days. That order, for the 
most part, was pretty well obeyed and executed. From 
Santa Fe to the National Bridge we had no guard what- 
ever. Our reliance for protection was upon the arms 
in the Diligence, which were sufficiently numerous and in 
good hands. No attack was made upon us, nor was a 
robber seen by any one of my company throughout the 
journey. The precautions which the Government took 
for my security from Puebla to Mexico were very ample, as 
you will perceive from the enclosed note from General 
Arista, the Minister of War, which he very poHtely for- 
warded to me at Puebla. 

At El Pinon I was met by the principal American citi- 
zens of this city and welcomed back to my residence among 
them in a manner far beyond what any services I have 



Minister to Mexico 211 

been able to render either them or my country entitled me 
to expect, or which I can claim to deserve. The journey 
taken altogether, though fatiguing and occasionally 
fraught with incidents somewhat perplexing, was interest- 
ing and fortunate. It is well that I did not proceed to 
New Orleans in order to embark in the British Packet. 
Had I done so, my stay would have been protracted four 
weeks longer, to say nothing of the dangers to which my 
family would have been exposed during the last month in 
New Orleans. 

On the 1st of the present month I called upon President 
Herrera and the Minister of Relations, and of course from 
that day resumed the duties of my mission. The state of 
public affairs in this country has remained, during my 
absence, without any essential change. The resignation 
of Mr. Otero, and the substitution of Mr. Cuevas, as 
Minister of Relations, does not weaken the administration 
in the popular confidence, and certainly adds something 
to the amount of talent and experience possessed by the 
Cabinet. There are still some doubts existing whether 
Paredes has positively left the country. Common report 
says he embarked in the British Packet of December, while 
in closer circles, it is whispered that he is still waiting in the 
State of Puebla ready to embrace a favorable moment to 
join in an attempt to overthrow the present government. 
It is also certain that the rumors anticipating the return 
of General Santa Anna have not abated. On the con- 
trary, diu-ing the last three or four days they have been 
circulated through the city with increased confidence 
and boldness, giving rise not only to repeated and 
earnest conversations, but to frequent newspaper discus- 
sions. The Congress is in session, but as yet has made 
so little progress in questions of public importance that 
it would be vain to predict what may be the result in 
any matter interesting to the United States. The duties 



212 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of the Legation which, as you know, devolved upon 
Mr. Walsh during my absence, have been conducted by 
him in a manner highly satisfactory to me and, as I think, 
creditable to him, which is no more than I had anticipated 
from his known tact, experience and accurate knowledge 
in diplomatic affairs. Immediately after I paid my official 
visits to the President and Minister of Foreign Relations 
he, of course, resumed the duties of his place as Secretary 
of Legation. It affords me sincere pleasure to inform 
you that the fracture which he received in the left arm 
is nearly recovered and cannot, I think, result in any 
permanent injury. . . 

The Mexican Government have acquiesced without 
hesitation in the arrangements suggested in your instruc- 
tions, as well in regard to the escort for the protection 
of the Commissioner to run the line, as in regard to the 
scientific corps to accompany him and the Surveyor. The 
course indicated by the President seems indeed to be in 
perfect accordance with what the Mexican Government 
had previously adopted. In order, however, to guard 
against the possibility of any future misunderstanding and 
to carry out literally your instructions, on the loth instant 
I addressed a note to the Minister of Relations upon the 
subject, to which he very promptly replied and in a 
manner, as it seems to me, entirely satisfactory. . . . 
In my view of the matter these two notes effectually 
accomplish the object pointed out by your instructions, 
and constitute a full compliance with the corresponding 
articles of the treaty. Should a more formal agreement 
however, be thought advisable, it can be obtained without 
the least difficulty. . . . 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 

Nathan Clifford 



Minister to Mexico 213 

Department of State, 
Washington, 

2nd March, 1849. 
To Nathan Clifford, Esquire, 
Etc., etc., etc- 

Sir: 

I enclose to you copies of two notes, the one of the 23rd and 
the other of the 24th ultimo, received at the Department from 
Mr. de la Rosa, since the date of my last despatch. 

It is difficult to conceive what can be the object of Mr. de la 
Rosa in pursuing so pertinaciously the question of the Protocol. 
He nowhere states or even intimates in what particular the 
explanations contained in it are, in his opinion, at variance 
with the amendments of the Senate to the original Treaty. 
Indeed, he expressly declares that he "will not enter into the 
discussion of the question whether the explanations thus re- 
corded in this document and the understanding therein given 
to certain articles of the Treaty, are or are not, at variance 
with the intention and design of the Senate of the United 
States which modified those articles." 

The President, in his message to the House of Represen- 
tatives of the 8th February, last, expresses the opinion that 
these explanations are in accordance with the Treaty and gives 
his reasons for this opinion. If this be correct as we believe 
it to be, then no practical question can ever arise between 
Mexico and the United States on the subject of the Protocol. 
Why, then, the pertinacity of Mr. de la Rosa? Does he not 
believe that he has gained some advantage over Mr. Sevier and 
yourself by the Protocol, but this of a character which he is 
unwilling to specify ? 

The first rumors circulated in this city concerning the 
Protocol were that it had annulled the amendments of the Sen- 
ate striking from the Treaty the loth article, and restored 
to grantees of land in Texas all the rights which they would 
have enjoyed under this article. These rumors were speedily 
dissipated by the pubHcation of the President's message and 
the accompanying documents. Still, it may be possible that 
the Mexican Government, urged thereto by Mr. de la Rosa, 



214 Life of Nathan Clifford 

will insist upon this outrageous construction of the Protocol. 
At all events, that Government should now be clearly and 
distinctly reminded of the character of this instrument under 
the Constitution of the United States, although upon this 
subject it is morally impossible they could have been mistaken. 
The notes of Mr. de la Rosa to myself have rendered this neces- 
sary. As you were one of the chief actors on the occasion, and 
are consequently well acquainted with all the particulars the 
President has deemed it proper to entrust you with the per- 
formance of this duty. Besides, this can be done more 
advantageously in Mexico than Washington, because it is al- 
most certain from the circumstances that Mr. de la Rosa has 
been acting without express instructions, and I fear under 
unhappy influences to which he is peculiarly exposed from his 
entire ignorance of the English language. Had he sought an 
interview with me upon the subject in the first instance, in- 
stead of adopting the course which he has pursued, it is prob- 
able I might have convinced him, that although the Protocol 
is of no validity considered as a new agreement between the 
parties, yet that the exposition of the three points which it 
embraces, is a fair and legitimate construction of the Treaty 
and ought to be entirely satisfactory to his Government. 

Mr. de la Rosa, in his note of the 24th ultimo, asserts that 
"this Protocol is a real Diplomatic Convention concluded 
between the Government of Mexico and that of the United 
States, and equally binding on both." And again: "In 
whatsoever light the Protocol may be considered, the under- 
signed firmly believes that the Government of the United 
States cannot do less than recognize in it, a Diplomatic 
Convention, as obligatory as the Treaty of Peace signed at 
Guadalupe." Now although the explanations contained in 
the Protocol present, in my opinion, the true exposition of the 
treaty ; yet if this were otherwise and they should contain any 
new stipulation, any change or modification whatever of any 
article in the treaty, not in conformity with its letter and spirit, 
to this extent they are an absolute nullity. . . . 

When the Senate of the United States deem it proper to 
make amendments to a treaty, it often becomes an indispens- 



Minister to Mexico 215 

able, though a delicate duty for the Secretary of State, under 
the direction of the President, to afford to the Government of 
the other party explanations of these amendments. In 
preparing the letter of explanation to the Mexican Minister 
for Foreign Affairs, I used the utmost caution and care and 
resorted to the best sources of information. I am not aware 
that any portion of this letter has ever been criticised, much 
less condemned. The President considers that the expla- 
nations in the Protocol are in conformity both with the treaty 
and this letter. In communicating with the Minister for 
Foreign Affairs upon the subject, I trust, therefore, that you 
may be able to convince him that the Protocol contains a 
correct exposition of the treaty, and that the treaty thus 
explained secures to Mexico all her legitimate rights, in the 
same manner and to the same extent as though the Protocol 
had been made a part of the treaty, under the authority of the 
Mexican Congress and the Senate of the United States. 

It would be lamentable indeed should this question, which 
does not appear to be of the least practical importance, produce 
unkind feelings between the two Republics at a moment 
when the future relations between them promise to be of the 
most auspicious character. 

Your despatches to No. 38, inclusive, have been received. 
I am. Sir, very respectfully. 

Your obedient servant, 
James Buchanan. 

On the inauguration of President Taylor, John M. 
Clayton was appointed Secretary of State. 

Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 

Hon. John M. Clayton, April 12, 1849. 

Secretary of State, 
Washington. 
Sir:— 

I avail myself of the opportunity afforded by the 
return of the British Packet, to transmit to you a copy 



2i6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of an official note addressed to me by the Minister of 
Relations, under date of the 17th of March last, explan- 
atory of an unfortunate affray that took place in the town 
of Tripuato, in the state of Guanajuato, between the 
authorities of that place and a party of American citizens 
en route for Upper California. It is doubtless well known 
to you that, since the discovery of the gold placers in 
California, great numbers of our citizens have availed 
themselves of the route through Mexico to pass into the 
new territories acquired by the United States under the 
late treaty of peace. Anticipating that such would be 
the case, I mentioned the subject to the Minister of 
Relations in February last, and received his assurance, 
not only that it was entirely agreeable to the Mexican 
Government that our citizens should pass through the 
Republic, but that all such as saw fit to take this route 
would receive every necessary protection. This conver- 
sation, I suppose, gave rise to the order of the Minister of 
War which accompanies the note of Mr. Cuevas. Since 
that period, several hundreds have passed through this 
city on their way to the different ports on the Pacific. 
They have generally travelled in parties varying from ten 
to thirty persons, and have seldom met with any impedi- 
ment or molestation. The authorities have been liberal 
in granting passports, and each man is permitted to bear 
arms, which is an indispensable concession in order that 
they may protect themselves against robbers. Notwith- 
standing the liberal course that has been pursued by the 
Mexican Government, I consider it my imperative duty 
to call your attention to this melancholy exception on the 
part of the authorities of Tripuato, and to make known the 
steps that have been taken for redress. The first infor- 
mation I received of the occurrence, was derived from the 
Minister of Relations through the note before mentioned, 
and the report of the Alcalde that accompanies it. It 



Minister to Mexico 217 

struck me at once that the account of the affray given by 
the Alcalde was incomplete and partial. Under the 
circumstances, I deemed it advisable to wait for more 
reliable and less interested information before attempting 
any reply. Several days afterwards I received a com- 
munication upon the subject from I. T. Hutton the 
Commander of the party, who, at the same time, trans- 
mitted to me various letters for the friends of the deceased, 
which will be duly forwarded by mail. A copy of the 
communication of Captain Hutton is enclosed. This 
statement, as it seems to me, shows very clearly that the 
unfortunate individual who lost his life in the affray, was 
entirely without fault, and that the whole proceedings of 
the authorities were without any sufficient justification. 
In this view of the case I should have deemed it my duty 
to reply at once to the note of Mr. Cuevas, if Captain 
Hutton had sent me the depositions spoken of in his 
communication. In the absence however, of authentic 
proofs to sustain my views of the case, I thought it more 
advisable, in the first instance, to call upon the Minister 
and speak to him verbally upon the subject, which I 
accordingly did, immediately after the receipt of that 
communication. I stated to him the substance of the 
facts as detailed by Captain Hutton, and informed him 
that, if the proofs sustained this view of the affray, I 
should deem it my duty to pass him a note urging every 
redress of which the nature of the case would admit. He 
manifested some siu-prise at this account of the conduct 
of the authorities, and expressed very great regret at the 
occurrence, informing me, at the same time, that orders 
had already been given for the arrest and trial of the 
offenders, which, he assured me, would be faithfully and 
promptly executed. In the course of the conference, he 
expressed a wish that my note might be delayed until 
the result of the investigation was known, which I have 



2i8 Life of Nathan Clifford 

thus far yielded to, as the depositions have not yet come to 
hand. I have written to our Consul at Mazatlan, in hopes 
to obtain them, or at least to ascertain whether there is 
any reason to expect that they can be obtained. When 
they are received, if they make good the allegations of 
Captain Hutton, I propose to reply to the note of Mr. 
Cuevas and place the transaction in its true light, unless, 
in the meantime, satisfactory steps are taken to punish 
the offenders. Any suggestions you may think proper to 
make upon the subject, I shall be pleased to receive and 
will readily follow. Judging from the usual delay that 
attends every legal proceeding in this country, there will 
be ample time for me to receive your view before the 
investigation will be closed. Notwithstanding this un- 
fortunate occurrence, I do not apprehend any difficulty in 
the future for our citizens who may select this route to 
California. The course which has been adopted in the 
case, so far from creating any embarrassment to the 
future traveller, will, in my judgment, have considerable 
tendency to lessen those which previously existed, by 
teaching the subordinate authorities that an American 
citizen cannot be murdered with impunity. I am re- 
assured by Mr. Cuevas that our countrymen who travel 
this way shall be duly protected against any molestation 
from those authorities. 

In my last despatch I communicated a copy of the 
supreme order issued by the Minister of the Hacienda to 
enable the holders of tobacco imported under the Ameri- 
can tariff, to exercise and enjoy the right secured to them 
by the 19th article of the treaty of peace. Noticing that 
the order had not been published, and several complaints 
having reached me that the subordinate officers refused to 
execute it, on the 9th instant I addressed a note to the 
Minister of Relations upon the subject, which, I trust, 
will have the effect to remove the difficulty. . . . 



Minister to Mexico 219 

Since the date of my last despatch Francisco Arangois 
has been appointed Minister of the Hacienda in the place 
of Pina y Cuevas resigned. The new Minister is a young 
man of considerable promise, and hopes are entertained 
that he may be more successful and useful than his 
predecessor. The Congress is still in session, and will not 
adjourn, it is understood, until about the 20th of next 
month. The initiative of a new tariff is still pending. 
What the result will be it is as yet impossible to predict with 
any certainty. The bill is not so liberal as it ought to be, 
though far less prohibitive than the existing law. There is 
much danger that in a conflict of opinion it may be lost. 
Some oppose it because the rates are still too high, while 
others are not prepared to abandon the present system. 
The two extremes agreeing in opposing the suggested 
modification, perhaps the better opinion at the present 
moment is that it will be defeated. 

I have the honor to be, Sir, 

With great respect. 

Your obedient Servant, 
Nathan Clifford 

Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 

May 14, 1849. 

Hon. John M. Clayton, 

Secretary of State, 
Washington. 

Sir:— 

I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the 
despatch of Mr. Buchanan, No. 15, instructing me to make 
certain explanations to the Mexican Government in regard 
to the paper called the Protocol, which was signed at 
Queretaro on the 26th of May 1848 by the Mexican 
Minister of Relations and the Commissioners of the 



220 Life of Nathan Clifford 

United States. The package containing it was post- 
marked at Vera Cruz on the 23rd ultimo and reached me 
in the regular course of the Mexican mail from that place. 
On the day of its receipt, the 27th ultimo, I called upon 
the Minister of Relations and had a pretty full con- 
versation with him upon the subject to which it relates. 
This interview was deemed advisable in the first instance, 
before addressing him officially, lest by possibility his 
opinions had undergone some change in consequence of 
events that had occurred in the United States, which it 
was known had been very fully communicated to him by 
the Mexican Minister resident in Washington. In the 
course of the conference I made known to him that I 
had received the despatch, and explained to him without 
reserve the nature of the duty which it instructed me to 
perform. It was especially my object to impress upon his 
mind the true character of the paper under the 
Constitution of the United States, which seems to be the 
main purpose of the instruction. In order to test his 
opinion fully, I presented the question in the various 
forms in which I afterwards treated it in my official note. 
To all this he replied that, it being admitted that the 
explanations of the Commissioners are a correct exposi- 
tion of the treaty as amended by the Senate, the whole dis- 
cussion was a mere war of words, utterly destitute of any 
practical importance either to Mexico or the United States. 
It was not even suggested by him, nor has it ever been 
pretended by the Mexican Government, so far as I know, 
that the Protocol is susceptible of a construction to 
enlarge or restrict any of the provisions of the treaty as 
amended by our Senate, much less that it has any validity 
to effect any such unconstitutional purpose, even sup- 
posing that its language and intent could be thus perverted. 
On the contrary, he received the explanations without the 
least manifestation of surprise, and promptly assured me 



Minister to Mexico 221 

that the subject involved no difficulty whatever. This 
was no more than I had a right to expect from Mr. Cuevas 
who was present when the paper was drawn up and doubt- 
less well recollects that explanations similar in principle 
were made at the time by the Commissioners of the United 
States. Considering his high character and intimate 
acquaintance with all the circumstances, I did not doubt 
for a moment when approaching him, that he would meet 
the question in a manner worthy of himself and of the high 
place which he then filled. It was then arranged between 
us that my note should be presented to him on the follow- 
ing Monday at one o'clock in the afternoon and that his 
note in reply would be so framed as to supersede all 
necessity on my part to rejoin. This conference took 
place on the 27th ultimo, as before remarked. On the 
morning of the 30th I received a message from Mr. Cuevas 
informing me that unexpected engagements rendered it 
inconvenient for him to see me at the hour which had 
been assigned for our meeting, and expressing a wish that 
it might be deferred to a future occasion. Knowing that 
serious dissensions had for some time existed in the 
Cabinet, and being desirous of fulfilling my instructions 
without further delay, I sent the note, which was already 
prepared, to the office of Relations, and caused it to be 
placed in the hands of Mr. Cuevas, requesting the Secre- 
tary of Legation who bore it to inform him that I would 
call at such time as suited his convenience. On the 
following day I learned with much regret that the Minister 
had tendered his resignation to the President ; and in a few 
days after that it had been duly accepted. It appears 
that Mr. Cuevas, finding it impossible to reconcile the 
misunderstanding between one of his associates and him- 
self, suddenly took the resolution of retiring from the 
cabinet, which intention he carried into effect without 
opening my note and without any other knowledge of its 



222 Life of Nathan Clifford 

contents than what he had derived from the previous 
conference. The period that elapsed between his resig- 
nation and the appointment of a successor, was a very 
critical one for the administration of President Herrera. 
Party spirit broke out through the press into the most 
violent denunciations of the residue of the cabinet, and the 
feeling of discontent was so openly manifested that, 
according to the current rumors, the President himself 
thought seriously, at one moment, of retiring from the 
Presidential chair. In the midst of this excitement appli- 
cation was made to the Chamber of Deputies for the 
requisite license to enable the President to appoint Sr. 
Don Manuel Pena y Pena to the vacancy in the Depart- 
ment of Foreign Affairs. It seems that the nomination 
could not be made under the Mexican Constitution with- 
out the precedent consent of the Congress, Pena y Pena 
being at the time Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. 
The requisite license was refused in the Chambers by a 
majority of three votes. This was an unexpected triumph 
of the war party, as it is yet called, on account of its 
continued hostility to the treaty of peace and to every 
measure calculated to restore friendly relations between 
the United States and Mexico. One of the main points 
urged against the nominee was the fact that he was one of 
the leading actors in the events which led to the treaty, 
and that as acting President of the Republic, he had 
celebrated the peace between the two countries. The 
majority on the occasion was of course made up in part of 
votes from the moderate party, which is still largely in the 
ascendant, when united, in both Houses of Congress. The 
defeat of the "moderados," though deeply to be regretted, 
had at least one good effect. It taught them the necessity 
of harmony, and enabled the President to nominate an 
acceptable successor to Mr. Cuevas and to secure a pretty 
harmonious confirmation of his nomination. The new 



Minister to Mexico 223 

Minister, Sr. Don Jose Maria de Lacunza, entered upon 
the duties of his office on the loth instant, and it may be 
said of him that he has a fair prospect of receiving the 
necessary support of the Chambers to render his services 
useful to his country. During the day, I was apprized 
of his appointment by the acting Minister, as also through 
two notes which I received from Mr. de Lacunza. These 
last named notes are indited in very courteous and satis- 
factory terms evincing pretty clearly, I think, that he is 
disposed to cultivate the most friendly relations with the 
United States. Copies of the notes are herewith enclosed, 
as also copy of my reply, which was forwarded to the office 
on the following morning. Being desirous of transmitting 
a copy of the reply which the change in the Ministry had 
devolved upon Mr. Lacunza to make to my note addressed 
to Mr. Cuevas, I called upon him on the afternoon of the 
nth instant and invited his attention to the subject. My 
views in regard to the character and effect of the Protocol 
being already before him in my note, I did not think it 
necessary to repeat them. The Minister, without any 
hesitation, informed me that, in his opinion, the paper 
could not be regarded as an addition to the treaty as 
amended by our Senate, and that in framing his note he 
should follow the views which had been taken of the 
question by the late President of the United States in his 
message of the 8th of February last, to the House of 
Representatives, assuring me, at the same time, that he 
considered those views correct, and that they were entirely 
satisfactory to the Mexican Government. When I com- 
menced writing I had every reason to expect that the 
reply of Mr. Lacunza would be received in season to 
enable me to forward it with this despatch. In that, 
however, I am disappointed, as you will perceive from 
the explanatory note which was received on yesterday. 
Copies of my note to Mr. Cuevas and the last named note 



224 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of Mr. Lacunza are herewith enclosed. Should the Minis- 
ter make good the assurances given at the conference, 
and which in effect are pretty clearly shadowed forth 
in his explanatory note, it may be assumed that every 
apprehension that any difficulty will grow out of this 
question, is at an end. It being a political rather than a 
legal question, it is safe to conclude that the courts of the 
United States will follow the construction adopted by the 
political department of the government. This rule 
has been uniformly adopted by the Supreme Court in the 
interpretation of treaties, even in cases where the Ameri- 
can construction differed widely from that of the other 
high contracting party. Where both the contracting 
parties are agreed, it would be an absurdity, as it seems 
to me, to suppose that any tribunal of our country, state 
or federal, would undertake to overrule their solemn 
determination. Should any of our courts adopt a theory 
so unsound and so directly at variance with the repeated 
decisions of the Supreme Court, it would be error cogniz- 
able by that court, where it could be immediately cor- 
rected. Such are my views of the question, which I 
submit for consideration to your better judgment. If 
Mr. Lacunza has the moral courage to put on paper his 
own deliberate opinions, the discussion here will terminate 
with his response. How far he may feel embarrassed by 
the correspondence of Mr. de la Rosa, it is impossible 
for me to foresee. The prevailing vice of public men in this 
country is the fear of responsibility. Whether the Minister 
will suffer himself to be influenced by this consideration or 
not, the future will show. Should he attempt to assail any 
of the positions assumed in my note, I hope to be able to 
fortify them and demonstrate their correctness. That 
truth and justice are on the side of the United States I 
know, and I have yet to learn there is much to fear in a 
cause which has those powerful agents for its support. 



Minister to Mexico 225 

Since writing the above, a second note from Mr. 
Lacunza has come to hand, which I hasten to lay before 
you. It appears from this note that Mr. de la Rosa has 
been instructed to close his correspondence and to forward 
all documents upon the subject to his government. In my 
opinion, this step augurs nothing unfavorable to the 
satisfactory termination of the discussion. With my last 
despatch I communicated a copy of my note to the 
Minister of Relations apprizing him of the difficulties 
that impeded the execution of the supreme order issued by 
the Minister of the Hacienda, under date of the 28th 
February last, to facilitate the transportation and sale of 
the tobacco imported during the American occupation. 
Herewith I enclose a copy of his reply, which has come to 
hand since that date. The supreme order was published 
on the 28th ultimo in the official journal, and some hopes 
are now entertained that the holders of the tobacco will be 
able to effect the sale without farther intervention on my 
part. My attention has been again called to the case of 
certain Americans who are confined in prisons in the city 
of Puebla under the charge of assassination and an at- 
tempt to rob. The delay of justice in this country, civil 
and criminal, is a serious evil and one that it is difficult to 
remedy. The federal government has no other power over 
the judiciary of the states than to ''excite'' the judges 
to a decision. That is done through the intervention of 
the Minister of Justice, and I am sorry to say it seldom 
has much effect. I have had occasion to invoke the 
exercise of this power on several occasions in favor of the 
Americans in Puebla, as also in behalf of an American 
citizen by the name of Garcia who, together with his wife, 
has been held in duress for a long time in Vera Cruz, 
Assurance was given by Mr. Cuevas not long before he 
resigned, that Garcia and wife would be discharged from 
their bond, and I hope soon to be informed that such has 



226 Life of Nathan Clifford 

been the result. Learning that very little progress had 
been made in the trial of the prisoners at Puebla, I made a 
third application to the government, insisting that they 
should either be tried or set at Hberty. Enclosed are 
copies of the communication received in reply to my 
application. . . . 

I have the honor to be, Sir, 

With great respect, 

Your obedient Servant, 
Nathan Clifford 

Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 

April 30, 1849. 

The undersigned, etc., etc., has the honor to inform 
His Excellency that he has just received a despatch from 
his government instructing him to invite the attention of 
His Excellency to a paper called the Protocol, which was 
signed at Queretaro on the 26th of May last by the Mexi- 
can Minister of Relations and the Commissioners of the 
United States, and to explain and declare to the Mexican 
Government the true character of the paper under the 
constitution of the United States. It is proper that His 
Excellency should also be informed that this step has be- 
come necessary in the opinion of the Government of the 
United States, in consequence of certain ojfficial notes 
addressed to the Secretary of State of the United States by 
the Mexican Minister resident in Washington. In compli- 
ance with this duty he begs leave, in the first place, to 
revert to the circumstances under which that paper was 
drawn up. The Commissioners of the United States 
arrived at Queretaro on the 25th of May 1 848, and had the 
satisfaction of learning that, almost at the very moment 
of their arrival, the treaty had been ratified by the Senate 
of Mexico, and that nothing farther remained to be done 



Minister to Mexico 227 

than to exchange the ratifications. On the following day, 
their credentials were presented to the President of Mex- 
ico by the undersigned, then one of the Commissioners, 
Mr. Sevier being unable to attend at the interview in 
consequence of indisposition. In one of their notes to the 
Minister of Relations from this metropolis, the Com- 
missioners had mentioned to him that they were 
authorized to give explanations of the changes which had 
been made in the treaty by the Senate of the United States 
and these explanations Mr. de la Rosa requested from 
them soon after their reception by the President. Accord- 
ingly, at a conference on the evg. of the same day, at the 
house of the Minister, these explanations were furnished 
by Mr. Clifford verbally, Mr. Sevier continuing too unwell 
to leave his room. Besides the Minister of Relations, 
there were present at the conference Don Luis G. Cuevas 
and Don Bernardo Couto, two of the Mexican Com- 
missioners who had signed the treaty at Guadalupe 
Hidalgo. The same three gentlemen called at the resi- 
dence of the Commissioners on the succeeding day, and Mr. 
Sevier then made the same explanations, in strict accord- 
ance with those previously given by Mr. Buchanan in his 
letter to the Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs. It was 
then suggested by the Minister that it would be highly 
useful in the then existing state of public feeling at Quere- 
taro, to put the explanations on paper. To this no objec- 
tion was perceived by the Commissioners, they having 
already declared, in the most explicit terms, and it being 
well known and understood by the Mexican Government 
that they were invested with no power to modify, change 
or alter, in the slightest degree, the treaty as amended by 
the Senate of the United States and that the memorandum 
of the conversations could no more have the effect to en- 
large or restrict the amendments made by the Senate than 
the conversations themselves which it recorded. The expla- 



228 Life of Nathan Clifford 

nations having been made by the Commissioners in good 
faith and the sincerest conviction that they were in exact 
accordance with the provisions of the treaty as amended 
by the Senate, they did not hesitate to accede to the re- 
quest, especially as they had perceived many reasons to 
justify it in the elements of discontent with which the 
government was surrounded, and believed it to be for the 
interest of both countries to strengthen its hands as far as 
possible against the impending revolution with which it 
was threatened. The explanations were accordingly re- 
duced to writing in Spanish by Don Bernardo Couto, 
and a translation of his draft was made into English, and 
the document thus prepared was signed by the Minister 
of Relations and the Commissioners and immediately 
published in all the newspapers of Mexico. It could never 
have entered into the minds of the Commissioners that 
the Minister was so slightly acquainted with the consti- 
tution of the United States as to suppose that they 
could bind their government as to the stipulations of a 
treaty without the fullest sanction of the Senate, even if 
they had not expressly informed him that such was not the 
fact ; and the undersigned does not doubt that His Excel- 
lency, Mr. Cuevas, was fully impressed at the time with 
that conviction, that he still entertains it, and that he will 
not hesitate to act upon it with the frankness and good 
faith by which he is distinguished. 

Such being the history of the document, such the 
circumstances and views under which it was signed, it is 
certainly a matter of surprise that His Excellency, Mr. de 
la Rosa, now Minister of Mexico in the United States, 
should have deemed it his duty to assert in the most formal 
manner, that "this Protocol is a real diplomatic conven- 
tion concluded between the Government of Mexico and 
that of the United States, and equally binding on both." 
This assertion is the more astonishing considering that 



Minister to Mexico 229 

Mr. de la Rosa had before him at the time the Protocol 
was drawn up, the letter of Mr. Buchanan of the i8th of 
March 1848, to the Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs 
from which the undersigned begs leave to make the follow- 
ing quotation. "Your Excellency is doubtless aware 
that, under the Constitution of the United States, the ad- 
vice and consent of the Senate is necessary to the validity 
of all treaties, and that this must be given by a majority 
of two thirds of the members present. Every treaty must 
receive the sanction of this august executive council in the 
manner prescribed by the Constitution before it can be 
binding on the United States." The assertion of Mr. de 
la Rosa cannot for an instant be entertained; and the 
undersigned, in carrying out his instructions, must be 
permitted to declare to His Excellency that, while the 
Government of the United States considers the Protocol a 
true exposition of the treaty and of the amendments 
made to it by the Senate, it, at the same time, regards 
it as of no force or efficacy whatever to enlarge or restrict 
any one of the provisions of the treaty. The treaty as 
amended must be construed by the appropriate tribunals 
of the United States entirely independent of the expla- 
nations of the Commissioners ; and were it possible so to 
interpret them that they should contain any new stipu- 
lation, change or modification of any article of the treaty 
not in conformity with its letter and spirit, to this extent 
they are an absolute nulHty. Under forms of government 
where the Sovereign or Chief Magistrate possesses ex- 
clusively the treaty making power, he may, perhaps, by a 
Protocol or other instrument, agree with the other party 
to modify or change a treaty in any manner he may think 
proper, after it has received his ratification. But under 
such governments as those of Mexico and the United 
States, where the approval of the Congress under the 
Constitution of the former, and the advice and consent 



230 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of the Senate under that of the latter, are necessary to give 
vaHdity to treaties, no change whatever can be made in 
any treaty between such parties which has not previously 
received the constitutional sanction of the approving 
power. Such being the case, it follows as a necessary 
consequence, that the Protocol can never receive an inter- 
pretation either to enlarge or restrict the provisions of the 
treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo as amended by the Senate of 
the United States. It is matter of great satisfaction to 
the undersigned in making this declaration in the name of 
his government, to know that in no event can any injustice 
result from it to Mexico, as both parties signed the expla- 
nations of the Commissioners as a true exposition of the 
treaty as amended by the Senate of the United States. 
But if it were otherwise, the Mexican Government still 
would have no ground of complaint. The amended treaty 
was approved by both branches of the Mexican Congress 
several days before these explanations were signed, and of 
course entirely independent of everything which they 
contain. Had the Mexican Government attached any 
serious importance to the Protocol, their course was plain. 
The Congress of Mexico ought to have approved and the 
President ought to have ratified the treaty with the 
explanations of the Commissioners as amendments. It 
would then have been returned to the President of the 
United States who might in his discretion have submitted 
it to the Senate for their advice and consent, and if this 
had been given, he would again have ratified it in its 
amended form. Without any resort to these constitutional 
sources of power, it is perfectly obvious that the Protocol 
has no validity to enlarge or restrict any article of the 
treaty, either under the Constitution of Mexico or that of 
the United States. It is impossible that the Mexican 
Government could have been ignorant of these well known 
truths. There was no want of information on the occasion 



Minister to Mexico 231 

in regard to the provision of the Constitution of the United 
States prescribing the manner of ratifying treaties. The 
Commissioners referred to it and expounded it. The 
letter of Mr. Buchanan before alluded to recites it in 
language clear as light. Mexico had at different periods 
concluded treaties with the Government of the United 
States, always under the same constitution. The form 
of the ratification of the treaty in question, as well as of all 
the former treaties, must have taught her government 
that the President of the United States, without the 
advice and consent of the Senate, could enter into no 
valid treaty stipulation whatever with a foreign power. 
Surely, if it be admitted that the President could not 
exercise this high power of binding the people of the 
United States without the advice and consent of the 
Senate, it requires no argument to show that the Com- 
missioners acting under his directions were equally 
destitute of any such authority. 

In conclusion, the undersigned begs leave to reiterate 
his opinion that the explanations of the Commissioners are 
a correct and truthful exposition of the treaty as amended 
by the Senate of the United States. It is not known that 
anyone has seriously attempted to prove the contrary and 
it is believed that no such attempt, if made, will ever be 
successful. There being no difference in opinion on this 
point between the Government of the United States and 
that of Mexico, it would be lamentable indeed should this 
question, which does not appear to possess the least 
practical importance, produce unkind feelings between 
the two Republics at a moment when their future relations 
promise to be of the most auspicious character. 

The undersigned, etc., etc., etc. N. Clifford. 

His Excellency, 

Sr. Cuevas, 

Minister of Relations, etc., etc. 



232 Life of Nathan Clifford 

National Palace, 
Mexico, 

July 13, 1849. 

The undersigned, Minister of Relations, has the honor to 
acknowledge the receipt of the Hon. Mr. Clifford's note of the 
30th of April last, in which that gentleman, by order of the 
Government of Washington, communicates to him the opinion 
of that government, respecting the value and binding force to 
be assigned to the proceedings (contenido, contents) of the 
conferences, held at Queretaro between the Hon. Mr. Clifford 
and the deceased Mr. Sevier, and Seiior Rosa, then Minister of 
Relations of the Mexican Republic. 

The undersigned considers himself excused from entering 
into a discussion, respecting the force of the said document, 
whether as a new treaty, or as an addition to the Treaty of 
Guadalupe, or as a correction (reforme) or alteration of that 
treaty. The Government of the undersigned does not consider 
it necessary to support those conferences, under such a char- 
acter, and conformably with the principles of national law 
which have been set forth at length on the part of the United 
States, principles which are similar in the constitutions of both 
countries, he does not doubt that it would be agreed, that if 
those explanations were to be considered under that point of 
view, it would not have yet reached its perfection. 

But although they should not be considered as additions to, 
or modifications of the treaty, the undersigned considers that 
they should be regarded as a correct and true explanation of 
the treaty. They are thus regarded by the Government of 
Mexico, and the undersigned is happy to see that the Honor- 
able Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States thus 
regards them, in the note to which the present is an answer. 
In this point of view their primitive and essential excellence, 
like that of every fair explanation, consisted and does consist 
in its not altering or modifying in any way the treaty itself, as 
approved by the legislative bodies, whose approval is required 
by the constitutions of both countries. The clauses of which a 
Protocol was drawn up were therefore clearer text (readaccion) 
of certain articles. 



Minister to Mexico 233 

That which was maintained by the late President has been 
confirmed in the note now answered, and is ratified by the Hon. 
Mr. Clayton, in his note to Senor Rosa, in which he in so 
animated a manner, and so much at length, impugns the force 
of this Protocol, as a diplomatic convention, differing from 
the treaty, and affirms that the differences between the true 
sense of the treaty and that of the Protocol in question, have 
not been exposed. 

With regard to the force of these clauses, as explanations, 
the Government of Mexico does not assign to them as much, 
as they would have had, if they had gone through the formali- 
ties required for a treaty, as I have already the honor to say; 
and still less than that which they would have derived, from a 
series of judicial decisions, pronounced in this sense: it does 
however assign to them, the force which they derived from the 
affirmation of the eminent persons, from whom they pro- 
ceeded, persons who had every means of knowing the truth, 
and had been officially commissioned to speak it. One fact is 
certain, in these clauses, and it is, that the Governments of the 
United States and of Mexico, in signing and ratifying the 
treaty, intended its sense to be the same, with that of these 
clauses. To admit any other supposition on the part of the 
Government of the United States, would be supposing that it 
believed the contrary of what it affirmed, at that time to 
Mexico, of what the President of the United States afterwards 
affirmed to their legislative houses, and the Honorable Mr. 
Clifford now affirms to this government. As to the Govern- 
ment of Mexico, it has ratified the treaty in the sense established 
by these explanations which do not alter but merely render 
clear the clauses of that treaty. 

There does not in consequence, appear to be any well 
determined point of ground, for the discussion of this affair, 
or for prolonging this correspondence; especially since in 
practice, as Mr. Clifford assures, there is no case of dispute. 
The Government of Mexico for the same reason believes, that 
these discussions should be considered as concluded, under the 
assurance that both governments are persuaded, that the 
clauses of the Protocol are the true and correct explanations 



234 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of the treaty, without altering it in any point. If therefore 
Mr. CHfford should, as the undersigned hopes, agree with him 
as to the propriety of putting an end to this affair, according to 
the terms indicated, he will give to the undersigned, the 
greatest satisfaction. 

The undersigned renews to the Honorable Mr. Clifford, etc., 

etc. 

I. M. DE Lacunza. 



Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 
July 13, 1849. 

The undersigned, etc., etc., acknowledges the receipt of 
the note of His Excellency, etc., in reply to the one which he 
had the honor to address to His Excellency's predecessor 
on the 30th of last April, in regard to the Protocol. It 
gives him great gratification to state that the note is, in all 
respects, satisfactory, and will have the effect to settle 
the question in a manner equally honorable to both coun- 
tries. In order, however, to guard against the possibility 
of any misconstruction of the correspondence, he begs 
leave to recapitulate some of the most important positions 
in regard to which there is an entire coincidence of opinion 
and a perfect agreement on both sides. 

1 . That the Protocol is not an addition to the Treaty 
and cannot so be considered either under the Constitution 
of Mexico or that of the United States. 

2. That it possesses no validity whatever to change or 
modify the treaty or any one of its provisions. 

3. That the Protocol is regarded as a correct interpre- 
tation of the treaty, although it can never receive a con- 
struction to enlarge or restrict the treaty or any one of its 
provisions. 

These principles being perfectly understood and agreed 
upon the undersigned will close the discussion on his part, 



Minister to Mexico 235 

and assure His Excellency that he considers the matter 
concluded. 

Etc., Etc., etc., 

N. Clifford. 
His Excellency, 

The Minister of Relations, 
Etc., etc., etc. 



Department of State, 
Washington, 

29th July, 1849. 
To Nathan Clifford, Esquire, 

Etc., etc., etc. 
Sir:— 

Your despatches numbers 44 and 45 have this day been 
received. It has been seen with regret from your note to the 
Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs of the 13th instant on 
the subject of the Protocol, that you have assented and 
admitted that that instrument presents a correct interpre- 
tation of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. This the Presi- 
dent does not and can never acknowledge, and it is deemed 
advisable to lose no time in apprizing you thereof. His wish 
and determination is to deal with the Mexican Government 
in a spirit of perfect fairness and candor. He conceives that 
it would not comport with this if he were to allow that Govern- 
ment to remain undeceived upon this point. He accordingly 
directs that as soon as may be practicable after you shall have 
received this despatch, you will address a note to the Minister 
for Foreign Affairs, in which you will state that while the 
President entirely concurs in the doctrines set forth in the 
paragraphs numbered i and 2, in your note above referred to 
he wholly dissents from that part of the paragraph numbered 
3 in the same note which states "That the Protocol is regarded 
as a correct interpretation of the Treaty." 

Considering also the importance of this matter and appre- 
hending that if you were to remain accredited in your present 
character to the Mexican Government, that Government 



236 Life of Nathan Clifford 

might have reason to distrust the decided nature of the 
President's objections to the principle admitted in the para- 
graph adverted to, he has deemed it advisable to recall you. 
A sealed letter to the President of the Mexican Republic 
announcing this event, is accordingly herewith transmitted, 
and also an open copy of the same which last you will com- 
municate to the Minister for Foreign Affairs with a note 
requesting him to appoint a day for you to present the original 
to the President. On taking leave of that functionary, you 
will address to him a few oral remarks expressive of the Presi- 
dent's desire to maintain unimpaired the existing pacific and 
friendly relations between the two countries. Prior to leaving 
the City of Mexico, you will present Mr. Walsh to the Minister 
of Relations as Charg6 d'Affaires ad interim, and will commit 
to his custody the archives of the Legation. 
I am, Sir, very respectfully. 

Your obedient Servant, 
John M. Clayton. 



Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 

Sept. 3, 1849. 

The undersigned, etc., has the honor to inform His 
Excellency, etc., that he has received a despatch from the 
city of Washington communicating the information that a 
certain part of the third proposition in his note of the 13th 
July last has been disapproved by his Government, and 
that the President does not and never can acknowledge its 
correctness, and instructing him to address this note to 
His Excellency and say that "while the President entirely 
concurs in the doctrines set forth in the paragraphs 
numbered i and 2, he wholly dissents from that part of the 
paragraph No. 3 in the same note which states that the 
Protocol is regarded as a correct interpretation of the 
treaty." It is also the duty of the undersigned to inform 
His Excellency that the President apprehending that were 



Minister to Mexico 237 

the undersigned to remain accredited in his present 
character the Mexican Government might have reason to 
distrust the decided nature of the President's objection to 
the principle admitted in the paragraph adverted to, has 
deemed it advisable to recall him. ... It only remains 
for the undersigned to request His Excellency to appoint a 
day when he may present letter to the President and take 
his leave of the Mexican Government. 
Etc., etc., etc. 

N. Clifford 



Legation of the United States, 
City of Mexico, 

September 6, 1849. 

Hon. John M. Clayton, 
Secretary of State. 

Sir:— 

. . . Immediately on the receipt of your despatch No. 
24, announcing my recall, I set about making the necessary 
preparations to return to the United States. My arrange- 
ments are so nearly completed that I venture to assure 
you that I shall leave this city on the 12th instant with the 
intention of taking passage in the British packet which 
will sail from Vera Cruz on the i6th, and hope to reach 
Washington the last of the present month. Having 
found no opportunity to settle my account, I shall em- 
brace an early moment after my arrival to call at the 
Department for that purpose. My final note was ad- 
dressed to the Minister of Relations on the 3d instant, as 
you will perceive from its date. The replies of Mr. 
Lacunza bear date the following day. One has reference 
to the Protocol and the other to the time and place 
appointed for the audience of leave. Agreeably to the 
arrangement pointed out in the last named note, I took 
leave of the President today in the presence of the cabinet 



238 Life of Nathan Clifford 

and a large number of the civil and military officers of the 
country. Enclosed you will find copies of the correspond- 
ence referred to, together with a copy of the remarks 
which I addressed to the President on the occasion and a 
copy of his reply. Immediately previous to the time 
assigned for the audience of leave, I presented Mr. Walsh 
to the Minister of Foreign Affairs as Charge d'Affaires ad 
interim, and have since committed the archives of the 
Legation to his custody. 

A few words of explanation in regard to the Protocol 
question and I have done. It is scarcely possible that 
any difficulty can arise in regard to it, considering the 
anxiety of the Mexican Government to arrange it and its 
readiness to acquiesce in almost any mode of adjustment 
that will be satisfactory to the Government of the United 
States. Waiving all discussion at this time of the corre- 
spondence that has been communicated and my position in 
regard to it, I beg leave to repeat what in substance may 
be found in one of my previous despatches, that the 
question has never attracted much attention in this 
country, nor is it now regarded as one possessing much 
importance. It being conceded that the Protocol is not 
an addition to the treaty, that it possesses no validity 
whatever to change or modify any one of the stipulations 
between the two countries, and that the Courts of the 
United States are not bound by the explanations which it 
contains, beyond their intrinsic truth, it does not seem to 
me there is much left for dispute. Should it ever become 
necessary to discuss the treaty and ascertain its true 
meaning on the three points embraced in the Protocol 
it will be found there is no substantial difference of opinion 
whatever between the Government of Mexico as at present 
organized, and that of the United States. All will agree, 
I suppose, that the treaty, in stipulating for the protection 
and maintenance of property, gives full confirmation to 



Minister to Mexico 239 

complete legal titles to lands. In giving this protection 
to property the treaty does no more than affirm a principle 
often recognized by the Supreme Court, that the United 
States, as a just nation, would support such titles although 
there was no treaty stipulation to that effect. The Pro- 
tocol, in the sense in which the present Government of 
Mexico understands it, does no more on this point than 
confirm complete legal titles and it is all that is claimed 
by Mr. Lacunza when he asserts that the Protocol is a 
correct interpretation of the treaty. It has never been 
pretended by Mexico, nor does her government now claim 
that the Protocol gives any confirmation whatever to 
incomplete titles. If the impression is entertained that 
Mexico seeks to enlarge the treaty through the Protocol 
so as to give any validity to impresario grants in Texas or 
elsewhere, it is my duty to assure you it is a mistake. No 
such pretension has ever been set up by this government, 
and I am assured, that it never will be. On one occasion 
I put the question distinctly to Mr. Lacunza — does the 
Mexican Government contend that the Protocol gives 
any confirmation to incomplete titles? To this he 
answered with much emphasis — "No, Sir." — The treaty 
provides that Mexicans who remain in the territories ceded 
shall be "secured in the free exercise of their religion 
without restriction." Mexico contends for nothing more, 
nor has it ever been pretended by anyone of her cabinet 
officers that the Protocol is more comprehensive on this 
point than the provision of the treaty already cited. 
Should our government think it necessary to require a 
more specific disclaimer on these two points, no doubt is 
entertained that it may be had without the least difficulty, 
or hesitation. The other point being one of no difficulty, 
I forbear to submit any remarks in regard to it. The 
following is the list of the correspondence appertaining to 
this question — 1st, Mr. Buchanan's despatch to me No. 14, 



240 Life of Nathan Clifford 

dated 17 February, 1849 — 2d, My despatch No. 40, March 
17, 1849 — 3d, Mr. Buchanan to me, No. 15, March 2, 1849 
— 4th, My note dated April 30, 1849 — 5th, Notes from Mr. 
Lacunza to me. May 13, 1849 — May 14, July 13 and 
September 4, 1849 — 6th, My despatch to you, July 14, 
1849, and my note to Mr. Lacunza July 13, 1849 — 7th, 
Your despatch to me July 28, 1849. 

Copies of additional correspondence between the Consuls 
at Tampico and Matamoras respectively, and myself, are 
herewith enclosed. 

With great respect. 

Your obedient Servant, 
N. Clifford. 

In the early fall of 1849 Mr. Clifford was again in the 
United States. His successor as minister to Mexico had 
been appointed and another and most interesting experi- 
ence in his life had been brought to a close. 



CHAPTER IX 
1849-1858 

On his return from Mexico, Mr. Clifford was a national 
character. His successful administration of the difficult 
mission added to his position in President Polk's cabinet 
had given him a prestige which he never before had 
possessed. Yet his financial status was such that he must 
at once find means of gaining a livelihood, and for the next 
three years at least, he could not hope for any presidential 
appointment. 

He therefore immediately turned his attention to re- 
establishing himself in the practice of his profession. He 
felt that Newfield no longer offered the opportunities 
which he desired. Accordingly he selected Portland as 
the site of his future residence. He came to this city in 
1849, and at first lived in the southern half of the double 
brick house which is now occupied by the Cumberland 
Club. Mr. John Appleton, whom we have known as chief 
clerk in the Navy Department under Polk, and who was 
soon to be elected to Congress, ' and had long been a friend 
of Mr. Clifford, urged him strongly to make Portland his 
home. 

Portland October 31st 1849 
My Dear Sir: 

Altho' you owe me two long letters, yet, as you have come 
back home, I feel that I ought to congratulate you upon your 
safe arrival. I should have done so before, had I not expected 
to see you last week in Portland. I hope you mean to be here 

' Biographical Congressional Directory, page 364. 
16 241 



242 Life of Nathan Clifford 

soon. I shall be right glad to see you, not only to talk a little 
over the past, but to have the benefit of a conference with you 
concerning the future. You have not abandoned, I trust, your 
intention of making this city your home. It is a pleasant 
location, I need not assure you, and though its business is not 
so great as it ought to be, its progressing improvements prom- 
ise to do it much good. Its political advantages may not 
be less, in the long run, than those offered by other places — 
But all this it is better to talk about. I am once more domi- 
ciled here, and either at my house or office I will be happy to 
see you always. 

I hope you find your family entirely well, and that Mrs. 
Clifford has returned, without detriment, from her journey to 
the land of the Aztecs. 

With my regards to her and my sincere congratulations to 
yourself upon your safe return. 

I am 

very truly 
yrs 

John Appleton 
Hon. Nathan Clifford 

The next ten years were to be some of the most momen- 
tous in the history of the country. The result of the 
Mexican War had been the acquisition of a vast tract of 
territory through which the southern statesmen hoped 
to re-acquire the influence in Congress they had lost by 
reason of the increase in the number and population of the 
northern states. Mr. Clifford had become too much of a 
power in Democratic circles and his love of politics was too 
great to expect that in such times he would absent himself 
from the arena. Therefore we are not surprised to find 
him in the thick of the fighting. 

As early as 1846, David Wilmot,' a Democratic repre- 

I See Rhodes, History of United States from the Compromise of 1850, vol. 
i., pages 89-90. 



1 849- 1 858 243 

sentative from Pennsylvania, had proposed, as an amend- 
ment to the bill providing for an appropriation of two 
milHon dollars to aid in settling our difficulties with 
Mexico, a stipulation that slavery should be prohibited 
forever in all territory to be acquired by the war. At the 
next session of Congress, the President asked for three 
million dollars to be employed in negotiating the treaty. 
An attempt was made to couple this grant with the same 
condition as that tried in the year previous. Both efforts 
failed, however, though the "Wilmot Proviso," as it was 
called, from that time on played a most important part 
in the history of the endeavors at settlem.ent of the slavery 
question. 

Almost every northern state, ^ through her legislature, 
urged its adoption, while the South protested against it. 
Bluster was loud. Threats of disunion^ were frequent. 
In considering this matter it should be borne in mind that 
under Mexican rule slavery did not exist in these territo- 
ries. By a well recognized maxim of International Law, the 
statutes of a subdued country obtain until changed by the 
conquerer. Yet so firm was the determination of south- 
ern statesmen to have these regions given over to the slave 
aristocracy that Calhoun ^ invented the ingenious theory 
that the moment the treaty with Mexico was ratified 
the Constitution of the United States, allowing slavery, 
changed the previously existing status just as if a new 
enactment had been passed by Congress. 

It is fair to say that the Wilmot Proviso was one of those 
ill advised, but well meaning, attempts at the curtailment 
of slavery which did much harm by keeping the country 
stirred up unnecessarily. There was no need of restricting 
slavery in territories where it did not and could not exist, 

' Wilson, History of the American People, vol. iv., page 137. 
* McMaster, vol. viii., pages 1-9. 
3 Rhodes, vol. i., page 94. 



244 Life of Nathan Clifford 

and any needless opportunity for the expression of south- 
ern threats was to be avoided. ^ 

After the ratification of the treaty with Mexico, the 
government of the recently acquired territories was again 
taken up in Congress. The matter was complicated by 
the fact of the discovery of gold in California and the 
subsequent rush of immigration to this part of the country. 
The new settlers acted promptly, erected a complete 
government, and applied to Congress for recognition as a 
free state. President Taylor" advised this course as to 
California at once, and also the postponement of action in 
regard to New Mexico. It is said that he would have 
signed a bill for the admission of the territories with the 
Wilmot Proviso attached. ^ 

Congress met December 3, 1849. The Democrats had 
112 members in the House, the Whigs 105, and the Free- 
Soilers 13. Had the latter been willing to vote for Win- 
throp, the Whig candidate for speaker, they could have 
insured the election of a person much more to their taste 
than Howell Cobb of Georgia, the Democra1!^c nominee, a 
man devoted to the slavery interests, who was finally 
chosen after a long contest. '* 

The Democratic Party was at loggerheads. The 
Calhoun faction represented one extreme, their contention 
being that Congress could not exclude slavery from the 
territories. At the other pole stood the supporters of the 
Wilmot Proviso. Associated with this latter group were 
those who doubted the necessity of such legislation, believ- 
ing that slavery was already prohibited by Mexican law, 
yet recognizing the right to Congress to prevent its 
introduction. 

The mean ground was held by those who questioned 

I Benton's Thirty Years' View, vol. ii., page 695. 

' Wilson, History of the American People, vol. iv., pages 135-6. 

3 Rhodes. * Ibid., vol. i., page 1 17. 



1849-1858 245 

both the necessity and constitutionaHty of the Wilmot 
Proviso. They beHeved that the function of Congress 
was to erect proper governments in the new territories, 
leaving the question of negro freedom or servitude to be 
determined by the inhabitants. This latter theory soon 
came to be known as that of "Squatter Sovereignty." ' 

In the State of Maine, the party had divided. Two 
groups had sprung up ; that which supported the adminis- 
tration and its poHcies was represented by such men as 
James W. Bradbury, Hugh J. Anderson, John Appleton, 
and Nathan Clifford; of the other faction, which took 
more advanced ground against slavery, Hannibal Hamlin 
of Hampden was one of the leaders. Both sides were 
striving for the same goal, the preservation of the Union, 
but they differed as to the means to be employed. The 
latter placed its hatred of slavery ahead of allegiance to 
party. Their loathing of the institution was so great and 
their conviction of its horrors so strong that they were 
willing eventually to risk a great civil war to enforce their 
ideas of right. These men generally supported the 
Wilmot Proviso. The former faction believed that the 
only way to keep the country together was to compromise 
with the South, hoping by this means to avoid an open 
rupture and trust to the future to bring saner ideas and 
an ultimate modus vivendi. They were called the pro- 
slavery Democrats. In the sense of being in favor of 
slavery, the term was a misnomer. They were divided 
among those who denied the constitutionality of the 
Wilmot Proviso and those who considered it constitutional 
but unnecessary. They also insisted upon adhering to the 
national party nominations, rather than breaking away to 
form a new group, which they considered sectional and 
therefore dangerous. 

The division among Maine Democrats had begun to 

■ Johnson's Life oj Stephen A. Douglas, pages 127-129. 



246 Life of Nathan Clifford 

show itself as early as 1848, while Mr. Clifford was in 
Polk's cabinet. In 1847 Senator Fairfield died, thus leav- 
ing a vacancy in his office for the balance of the term. 
Mr. Clifford was a candidate for the nomination' from 
the administration group; Mr. Hamlin from the other 
wing. Mr. Hamlin won and was again successful against 
Mr. Clifford in 1850^ at the expiration of the period for 
which Senator Fairfield had been elected. These defeats 
were disappointing to Mr. Clifford, who never was able to 
get over his desire to sit in the United States Senate. 

The repeated references to the Protocol in the following 
letters should be explained. It will be remembered that 
this act of the commissioners was immediately taken up by 
the Whig administration as a cause for recalling Mr. 
Clifford. President Polk in his diary under date of Febru- 
ary 10, 1849, ascribes the agitation in the Senate to Sena- 
tors Benton and Clayton, giving as a reason for Benton's 
hostility, the government's attitude in the trial of Colonel 
Fremont, Benton's son-in-law. 

On February 9, 1849, President Polk sent to the House 
a message which so clearly disposes of the question that it 
has been deemed wise to quote at length therefrom ^i 

He emphasizes the fact that the task of the commission- 
ers was to "consummate" the treaty, which was signed 
at Guadalupe Hidalgo and was ratified by the Senate with 
amendments; that they were expressly cautioned not to 
negotiate any new agreement or to change in any par- 
ticular the one already made, although it would probably 
become necessary to explain to the Mexican Minister 
for Foreign Affairs the reasons which had influenced the 
Senate in adopting these several amendments to the 
treaty; that they were warned to do this by personal 

' Hatch, History of Maine, vol. ii., page 336. 

* C. E. Hamlin, Life and Times of Hannibal Hamlin, page 241. 

» Messages and Papers of the Presidents, vol. iv., page 679. 



1 849-1 858 247 

conferences and to avoid diplomatic notes as much as 
possible. 

He states that the Secretary of State expounded to the 
Mexican Government by letter the meaning of the amend- 
ments made by the United States, and that these were the 
only explanations before the Mexican Congress at the 
time of the ratification of the treaty. Indeed, the United 
States commissioners did not present their credentials 
until after that event. Therefore the agreement between 
the two governments became binding before the com- 
missioners had any dealings with the Mexican authorities. 

He goes on to say that, had the Protocol amended the 
treaty, it would have been a nullity. It was never con- 
sidered as a part of that instrument by the commissioners, 
the administration or the Mexican Government. He 
emphasizes the fact, however, that the Protocol is in 
exact accordance with the terms of the treaty as amended 
by the Senate, and shows by quotations from both 
documents their complete correspondence. 

He calls attention to the fact that the changes insisted 
upon by the United States Senate were in Articles 9, 10 
and 1 2 . The first stipulated ' ' for the incorporation of the 
Mexican inhabitants of the ceded territories and their 
admission into the union. ... It provided also that in 
the meantime they should be maintained in the enjoyment 
of their liberty, their property and their civil rights now 
vested in them according to Mexican laws. ... It then 
proceeded to guarantee that ecclesiastics and religious 
corporations should be protected in the discharge of the 
offices of their ministry and the enjoyment of their prop- 
erty . . . and that there should be free communication 
between the Catholics of the ceded territories and their 
ecclesiastical authorities," even though the latter should 
reside within the limits of the Mexican Republic. The 
President then shows that all these rights are included in 



248 Life of Nathan Clifford 

the new Article Nine, and that the Protocol merely states 
this fact. 

The message then takes up Article Ten and points out 
that this section not only protected legitimate titles but it 
also attempted to resuscitate grants which had become a 
nullity; that it was left out by the Senate; and that the 
Protocol merely states that the striking out of this part 
was not intended to destroy valid titles to land which w^ere 
in full force and which are protected by Article Eight of the 
treaty, and would have been guaranteed, without any 
specific mention, by the laws and Constitution of the 
United States. 

In his final paragraphs the President speaks of the last 
change made by the Senate. This refers to the payment 
of the balance, $12,000,000.00. Originally this was to be 
turned over to Mexico in the form of government stock, a 
provision to which the United States would not agree. 
The Protocol simply states that our government did not 
mean to restrict the right of Mexico to transfer this 
indebtedness. He shows that such a right is but the 
common law privilege of every creditor and was never 
meant to be curtailed by the treaty. 

President Polk was very much pleased with this message 
and refers to it several times in his diary as being 
unanswerable. After the preceding explanations, the 
following letters will be better understood : 

Meadville, Penna, 17 October 1849. 
My dear Sir: 

I have been here for some days on a visit to my sister Mrs. 
Yates who I regret to say is in wretched health. I should 
have written to you after hearing of your arrival in Washing- 
ton, had I been certain that my letter would have found you 
there. 

Most cordially do I congratulate you upon your return to 
your native land after having so ably, honorably & successfully 



I 849-1 858 249 

discharged the duties of your important mission. With your 
capacity & tact you must hereafter occupy a high & important 
position in the Country ; & you have no friend who will be more 
gratified by your elevation than myself. During your absence 
I observed your course with great solicitude & took care to 
have you defended in the public press whenever occasion re- 
quired. The article in the Union in reply to that of the 
National Intelligencer on the subject of the protocol appears to 
have silenced the Whig battery. 

It would seem that in order to restore the vigor & strength 
of the Democratic party it is necessary that they should be 
occasionally well flogged. The defeat of General Cass was to 
be sure a severe remedy ; but it has proved effectual. General 
Taylor's administration will destroy the prestige in favor of 
mere military men ; and we shall not soon hereafter witness the 
election of any man to the Presidency who possesses no quali- 
fications for the office & no experience to guide him in the 
discharge of its important duties. He is, I believe, frank, 
honest & desperately brave; but from the necessity of his 
position he was compelled to devolve his duties upon his 
Cabinet. 

At the late election, this State has shewn herself to be, what 
she essentially is. Democratic by a large majority; but the 
time has passed when a Democratic nomination is equiva- 
lent to an election. The nominating Body must consult the 
will & the wishes of the people in their selection; — otherwise, 
under ordinary circumstances, defeat will be the consequence. 

I confess that for the first time in my life I feel somewhat 
alarmed for the union. Should the Wilmot proviso pass & 
be approved by the President ; we shall see such a movement, 
deliberate, & determined on the part of the South as I never 
expected to witness. They say that the constant agitation 
of the slave question at the North reaches the Slaves & excites 
their wild passions. — that self preservation is the first law of 
nature & that the question has now become social rather than 
political. That if the security of their wives & children & all 
they hold most dear is endangered by living with us they must 
separate from us. All they desire is to be let alone. 



250 Life of Nathan Clifford 

With my cordial congratulations & kindest respects for Mrs. 
Clifford, I remain truly your friend. 

James Buchanan. 
Hon : Nathan Clifford. 

Wheatland, near Lancaster, Penna Dec 24th '49. 
My Dear Sir: 

Shortly after your arrival in this country, I addressed you 
a letter of congratulation; but not knowing your Post Office I 
directed it to the Hon. Nathan Clifford, Maine. I presume it 
was never received or it would have been answered. I remem- 
ber with peculiar pleasure our intimate association in the 
Cabinet of Mr. Polk & it is my sincere desire to keep the chain 
of friendship bright between us as long as we may live. — I 
shall direct this letter to Portland to the care of our friend 
Woodbury, hoping that it may have a better fate than its 
predecessor. 

I learn from an authority on which I rely that Colonel 
Benton^ intends again to bring the Protocol before the Senate 
& we ought to be prepared to meet him. I should, therefore, 
be pleased to learn the final action upon that subject in Mexico, 
with any observations on it you may think proper to make. 
The Colonel never yields & his signal discomfiture in the Senate 
last winter will only make him the more determined. 

Well Cobb has been elected Speaker & I rejoice at it. He is 
a sound Democrat, an able & excellent man & well qualified to 
perform the duties of the chair. The Session will perhaps be 
more important than any which has ever been held since the 
adoption of the Federal Constitution. The crisis on the 
slavery question is rapidly approaching & the South at last are 
nearly unanimous. This arises from the fact that the agi- 
tation of the question in the North which has been incessant 
for the last fifteen years has affected the slaves of the South & 
rendered the domestic fire side insecure. Self preservation is 
the first law of nature, & unless this agitation can be arrested 
the Union is in danger. I am not alarmed at trifles; but such 

' Thomas Hart Benton, Senator from Missouri, author of Thirty Years' 
View. 



i849-i858 251 

is my opinion. Before the close of the Session the people may 
have to balance the Wilmot Proviso (which never was any 
thing but a humbug except for the purpose of agitation) & 
the abolition of Slavery in the District of Columbia against 
all the innumerable blessings & benefits of our glorious Union. 

I should dearly like to see Mrs. Clifford & yourself & hear all 
the wonders of Mexico. I expected much from you as a minis- 
ter but you have exceeded my expectations. I beheve with 
General Herrera that if you had been our minister for two years 
before the war, this would have prevented hostilities. I might 
say the same of Slidell. Shannon was a poor apology for a 
minister. 

With my kindest regards for Mrs. Clifford, I remain 
Sincerely & respectfully 
Your friend 

James Buchanan 
Hon : Nathan Clifford 

Wheatland 8 January 1850 
My Dear Sir: 

I have received your favor of the 28th ultimo & am aston- 
ished at the conduct of Mr. Clayton which it portrays. I have 
but little doubt that he & Col. Benton are on confidential terms ; 
and if so, I can scarcely believe, that the latter will again 
attack the protocol & thus produce the necessity of calling for 
& publishing the whole correspondence. It is possible that the 
correspondence between Mr. Clayton & Mr. Rosa sent to 
Congress by the President may render this necessary. Of this 
we can judge when it is published. I have deemed it best 
to make Colonel King' acquainted with all the facts. 

As no one can tell a priori what course Col. Benton may 
pursue, I would advise you to communicate fully upon this 
subject with some able & discreet friend in Washington. 
There may be a disposition in a certain quarter there to make poor 
Sevier & yourself mainly responsible for the protocol & to excuse 
the administration of Mr. Polk'' for making the best of it after it 

I William R. King of Alabama, Vice-President in Pierce's administration. 
^ Polk & Sevier were both dead. 



252 Life of Nathan Clifford 

•was communicated to the Department. For my own part I 
would despise any such course as far as I am concerned & shall 
defend both yourself & Col: Sevier a'outrance should this 
become necessary. Still I am clearly of opinion that you 
should have some person at Washington able & willing to act 
promptly should an assault be made. 

Please to remember me kindly to Mr. Appleton & believe me 
always to be sincerely & respectfully 

Your friend 

James Buchanan 
Hon: Nathan Clifford. 



Wheatland, near Lancaster, io Aug: 1850. 
My Dear Sir: 

Since the receipt of your letter, I have been absent at the 
Bedford Springs. This is the reason why it has not been 
sooner acknowledged. 

You have been quite too modest. Other ministers not half 
so meritorious as yourself have taken care to have their 
correspondence published, whilst you have remained in the 
background. When the correspondence relating to the late 
Mexican Treaty shall be called for, you ought to procure some 
friend in the Senate to ask for yours, as well as Mr. Letchers, on 
the same subject. If you would write to Col. King, I know he 
would be happy to see that justice should be done to you. I 
presume, also, that Mr. Bradbury is your friend. Your cor- 
respondence relating to the protocol ought also to be pub- 
lished, though the present moment may not be the most 
propitious time. It is due to yourself, as well as to the late 
administration, that your light should not be hid under a 
bushel. 

I have not seen either the Buffalo Republic or the Maine 
Democrat: & should not have believed any statement asserting 
that you were friendly to the Wilmot Proviso. 

It would require a prophet divinely inspired to predict what 
will be the condition of parties in 1852. It is very certain that 
at the present moment no National Democratic Convention 



I 849-1 858 253 

could be held. The Democracy of Maine & Mississippi are 
as wide asunder as the poles on the Slavery question. From 
present appearances, the next Presidential election will be 
"a scrub race." 

With my kind regards for Mrs. Clifford & Mr, Appleton, I 
remain your friend very respectfully 

James Buchanan 
Hon. Nathan Clifford. 

P.S. How are you succeeding professionally? 

At the moment when a peaceful settlement of the 
slavery difficulties seemed impossible, Henry Clay came 
forward in the Senate, his body enfeebled by age and 
illness, and with great eloquence pleaded for a solution in 
the nature of a give and take. ^ After long debate, a series 
of measures were passed known as the Compromise of 1850. 
It was enacted in the closing month of the year that Cali- 
fornia be admitted to the Union as a free state, with the 
constitution she herself had formed; that the rest of the 
Mexican cession be left open to slavery, should events and 
the movement of population out of the south establish 
it there; that the trade in negroes be abolished in the 
District of Columbia. Also a more effective fugitive slave 
law was passed.^ 

It is pathetic to look back upon the nearly universal 
applause with which the passage of these measures was 
greeted. The country was full of high hope that the vexed 
question had been permanently settled. The subsequent 
utter failure of these enactments to accomplish the result 
expected of them leaves one the conviction that the only 
possible conclusion of the bitter controversy was the final 
one of a resort to arms. Yet in 1852 so great was the 
faith in the success of the new laws that both the Whig 

' Rhodes, Hist, of the U. S.from the Compromise of 1850, vol. i., page 123. 
* Wilson, vol. iv., page 140. 



254 Life of Nathan Clifford 

and Democratic national platforms ratified them with the 
idea of obtaining popular support for their tickets. ^ 

The Democrats entered the field almost certain of 
winning. Therefore the contest for the nomination was 
very sharp. The leaders in the Democratic convention 
were Cass, Buchanan, Marcy and Douglas. ^^ On the 
thirty-fifth ballot the name of Franklin Pierce of New 
Hampshire appeared for the first time, Virginia casting her 
fifteen votes for him. From that time on, he gained 
steadily until on the forty-ninth there was a stampede to 
him, resulting in 282 out of 288 votes. ^ William R. King 
of Alabama was chosen for Vice-President. General 
Scott received the Whig nomination. 

Mr. Clifford had been in favor of Buchanan; still he was 
too much imbued with the discipline of party not to 
support loyally its standard and choice wherever they 
might lead, provided the Democratic principles and honor 
were not transgressed. The following letters are indic- 
ative of the influence of Mr. Clifford among the leaders of 
the Democracy, and show not only that he had been a 
delegate to the National Convention in Baltimore, but 
that he also had been influential in throwing the Buchanan 
votes to Pierce when it became evident that the former 
could not receive the nomination. 

In order to insure a better understanding of the cor- 
respondence, mention should be made of the wide spread 
anti-CathoHc feehng existing at this period in the eastern 
states. This sentiment had given rise to the foundation 
of the Know Nothing order and kindred organizations. 
The purpose of the societies was to inculcate a sentiment 
of Americanism, and their efforts were largely directed 
against what to them seemed to be the growing danger 
of Roman CathoHc power. During the campaign, the 

I Rhodes, vol. i., pages 249 and 254. 

' Ibid., page 247 ; Life of Douglas, page 196. ^ Rhodes, vol. i., page 248. 



I 849-1 858 255 

attempt was made by the Whigs to prove that Pierce had 
favored the retention^ of the anti-CathoHc religious test 
in the constitution of New Hampshire. 

(To Mr. Clifford) 

TowANDA, Bradford Co. 1 
Penna. June 22nd 1852. J 
My Dear Sir: 

I take great pleasure in sending you herewith a proof-sheet 
copy of a letter written by our friend the Hon. James Bu- 
chanan — in pursuance of the understanding, when I had the 
pleasure of seeing you at "Wheatland."^ 

I also enclose a copy of a letter which I have this day mailed 
addressed to Gen. Pierce. — It is written, as the Vermont 
soldier fought — "on my own hook"; but for obvious reasons, 
I wished you to know how, and what I had written. Now, in 
view of possible contingencies, would it not be well for you soon 
to pay an accidental or direct visit to Gen. Pierce. — He 
would doubtless refer to the suggestion in my letter; and the 
whole subject of your coming to Pennsylvania, and instant 
communication with Judge Campbell might be arranged. 
Gen. Pierce might possibly hesitate to write himself, either to 
you, or to Judge Campbell; — but would probably consult you 
in person, if you saw him. — 

The most daring and desperate efforts will be made by 
Scott's friends — Stevens, Gov. Johnston and others, to carry 
this state ; and not a moment, or an effort on our side, should be 
lost, to meet their machinations. — Pray let me hear from 
you after you have seen Gen. Pierce ; or even if you should not 
see him, I should be gratified by receiving a brief line from you. 
— I take it for granted, the letters of Mr. B. will be pubHshed 
at once, with a suitable notice in your democratic papers. 

I am, dear sir, hastily and very truly, your friend & Obedt. — 

C. L. Ward 

' McMaster, History of the People of the United States, vol. viii., pages 
76-88. Hatch, Hist, of Maine, vol. ii., page 357. 

' This letter is published in the Portland Argus, June 28, 1852, and makes 
an appeal for the support of Pierce and King. 



256 Life of Nathan Clifford 

TowANDA, Bradford County ) 
Penna. June 2ist 1852. ( 

Hon. Franklin Pierce ") 

Concord, N. H. I 

Dear Sir: 

I have the honor and pleasure to send you herewith, a proof 
sheet copy of a letter recently written by the Hon. James 
Buchanan to a number of citizens of this county, in reply 
to one of their own, addressed to him a few days prior to the 
meeting of the late National Democratic Convention at 
Baltimore. This letter is like every thing emanating from its 
distinguished author — frank, manly, decided and able; and 
will have a most powerful influence in our state in rousing our 
Democracy from the momentary apathy into which they had 
fallen, from disappointed state-pride and strong personal 
attachment to our own worthy fellow-citizen. ^ 

Although I can scarcely claim the honor of a personal 
acquaintance, I feel sure from your established character, 
you will pardon to the spirit of candor and frankness, 
the liberty I have taken in addressing you this hasty note; 
and also the further liberty of pointing out one or two measures 
which, if pursued, may essentially promote the success of the 
democractic party in Pennsylvania, in the coming contest. 
By the advice of our friend, Mr. Buchanan, and as coming 
from him, it was my purpose in returning to my home by way 
of New York City from Baltimore (where I had been a dele- 
gate) to have paid you a brief flying visit, in order personally 
to assure you of the cordial support of both him and his 
friends in Pennsylvania; and also to speak fully and frankly, 
(as I think I might do advisedly) of the chances and prospects 
of the Democratic ticket in our state. But I met at New York 
your friend Mr. Atherton, to whose zeal and ability you owe 
much, if you value the proud distinction conferred by the late 
Convention. 

He informed me you were not at Concord; and I gave up 
the visit, which, under the circumstances, might not have 
been either useless or unwelcome. I should fear to pay that 

' Argus, June 28, 1852. 



i849-i858 257 

visit now, when your attention must be occupied by numerous 
calls and by the cares of an exacting and extended correspond- 
ence. 

The main difficulty likely to arise in Pennsylvania is from 
a defection of the Catholic voters, of which there are some 
25,000 in the state. Mr. Buchanan, from a variety of circum- 
stances, has a strong hold upon the attachment of our natural- 
ized citizens, and could have commanded an united vote. But 
there is some reason to fear that Gen. Scott may possibly prove 
a formidable rival, as matters have resulted. 

This will not be, as many without sufficient warrant have 
assumed, because New Hampshire has an offensive religious 
test in her State Constitution; but because Mr. Seward^ and 
Gen Scott, his protege and nominee, have more recently 
pandered to a soulless degree for popularity and Catholic 
prejudices and superstitions. It is also to be feared too, 
that this already apparent inclination toward Scott, may have 
been accelerated by an occurrence in our own state elections 
last fall. — Judge Campbell of Philadelphia, the present 
Attorney General of the state, was nominated with four others 
on the Democratic ticket, for Judges of the Supreme Court. 
He is a man of unspotted reputation, and undoubted ability; 
but in his religious preferences, attached to the Catholic Church. 
He was the only man on the Democratic ticket who failed to he 
elected! Religious bigotry was openly appealed to by a clique 
who professed to support the claims of Gen. Cass; and who 
being hostile to Mr. Buchanan struck at the only one of his 
prominent friends within their reach. Mr. Buchanan defended 
him; but Mr. B. in his turn has failed in the National Con- 
vention ; and the blandishment of the Scott and Seward school 
of politicians, fall now upon open ears, and ready minds. 
Judge Campbell can do more than any other man in the 
state, to put down and defeat the efforts making to produce 
defection among his Catholic friends. 

The Hon. Nathan Clifford, having been in the Cabinet with 
him, was naturally a warm and active friend of Mr. Buchanan. 

• William H. Seward, Sec. of State under Lincoln. Biographical Con- 
gressional Directory, page 791. 



258 Life of Nathan Clifford 

As such, he became known personally to a large number of the 
Pennsylvania delegates and other influential Pennsylvanians 
at Baltimore — Comprising our strongest men, and scattered 
throughout the different districts of the state. He is also 
decidedly your friend; and never spoke of you but with the 
warmest expressions of respect. When the contest at the very 
last moment, seemed to bring your name prominently forward 
with that of Gov. Marcy — his voice and influence with the 
friends of Mr. Buchanan, were unequivocally for you. 

On his way home he spent a night with Mr, Buchanan at 
Lancaster. I met him there; and, as I have before stated, 
formed the determination upon advice, to visit you at once, to 
put you in possession of some latent matters likely to afl'ect the 
present canvass. 

Mr. Clifford, also had, at my desire, an interview at Phila- 
delphia with Judge Campbell. I should have continued on 
with him, to Concord except from the information received 
from Mr. Atherton of your absence from home. — It is desir- 
able to inspirit the active and leading democrats of the state; 
it is also desirable to prevent any defection in the Catholic 
vote. Now, my suggestion is this: that Mr. Clifford should, 
some weeks hence, come into Pennsylvania, and go with Judge 
Campbell quietly over the state-holding few, if any public 
meetings, but seeing the prominent democrats, and urging 
them to the contest. The positively certain beneficial results 
of this step, I need not enlarge upon. Nor need I to press the 
importance of carrying Pennsylvania; for no Presidential 
candidate of either party, ever succeeded without the electoral 
vote of the old "Keystone Commonwealth." In all candor, 
yet with the best hope, I deem her at this time, a doubtful 
state ; especially in view of the sectarian efforts of the Whigs. 
I name Mr. Clifford, simply because I think, from his eminent 
position in the party, his attractive manners and address, and 
above all, his late sympathies and general acquaintance with 
our leading democrats — he is peculiarly suited to our meridian 
and our men, in view of the object to be accomplished. I 
name him also, because I think he would cheerfully undertake 
this mission, if he supposed it would promote your success, and 



i849-i858 259 

the triumph of the Democratic party. I know Judge Camp- 
bell intimately ; and I almost feel authorized to speak for him 
upon this subject, ex cathedra. 

My residence is at Towanda, Bradford County, a part of 
Mr. Wilmot's late district, which district I had the honor (so to 
speak) to represent in the late Convention at Baltimore. 
Here, Mr. Cass lost some 3000 democratic votes in 1848. I do 
not think the present ticket will lose 300, unless a portion of our 
1500 Catholic voters are seduced from us. I feel persuaded, in 
this district alone, we can wipe off one third of the whole 
Taylor majority in the state, in the late Presidential canvass. 
I repeat my belief is, we shall carry the state, but the prospect 
is not so certain, that any reasonable precaution should be 
neglected. — 

I have thus, my dear sir, written you a long, and a very 
frank letter; — coming as it does from one comparatively a 
stranger. It is both longer and more frank than it would have 
been, if circumstances, as well as my own deliberate choice, 
did not exclude me from cherishing even the slightest political 
aspiration affecting myself personally; and thus leave my 
motives beyond all suspicion of selfishness. Your friend Mr. 
Atherton knows me slightly: with Mr. Clifford, I am much 
better acquainted. Both I presume, will testify that my sug- 
gestions are not entirely unworthy of consideration. For 
myself — I will only add, with my best wishes for your success, 
that I have the honor to remain 

faithfully, your friend 
and obedt Servt. 

C. L. Ward. 

Philadelphia, 23 June, 1852. 
Nathan Clifford, Esquire, | 
Portland, Me. j 

My Dear Sir: 

A few days since, I wrote to General Pierce, and suggested 
to him the policy of saying something favorable of Mr. Bu- 



26o Life of Nathan Clifford 

chanan, in his letter of reply to an invitation which we intend 
to send him, to attend our 4th of July celebration. 

Now, my dear sir, he may not think this as important a 
matter as many of us do here. The truth is, and it is fallow 
to try to cheat ourselves into a different belief, that we shall 
lose a great many of the Catholic votes of our State, — partic- 
ularly now that Scott is the opposing candidate, — unless 
we can assure them that General Pierce is the friend of 
Buchanan. 

When writing to General Pierce, as you no doubt frequently 
do, could you not suggest to him that in case he wrote a letter to 
Pennsylvania, in reply to any 4th of July invitations, it would 
be well to speak handsomely of Mr. Buchanan in one of them ? 
You could do this without letting him suppose you heard from 
me upon the subject. Since the Convention, you have your- 
self been in this State, and may have witnessed some of the 
feeling exhibited at the result, by portions of our Democracy. 
The truth is, we shall have great trouble to keep many of our 
men in the ranks, and an impression is being created, without 
fotmdation, of course, that there is no friendly feeling on the 
side of Pierce towards Buchanan. If this is not counteracted, 
and that speedily, the State will be lost to us at the coming election. 
Now, a kind letter from Pierce in favor of Buchanan, to be 
read on the 4th would be the very thing to rouse them to their 
wonted enthusiasm. The whole State would be aroused at 
once, and we should be able to carry it by an old-fashioned 
Jackson majority. 

I hear that Mr. Buchanan will be in this city to-day. I have 
not seen him since his defeat but have had several letters from 
him, in all of which he speaks in the highest terms of our 
nominees. 

The whigs here had a ratification meeting last night. It was 
a tame affair altogether. The only truly refreshing thing in 
the whole matter was, that Senator Jones, of Tennessee, in his 
speech, said, that if the Loco Focos did not drop the title of 
General before Pierce's name, he, Senator Jones, would himself 
"tear the epaulettes from the shoulders of our candidate, and 
snatch the military button from off the coat which he disgraced!!!" 



1 849-1 858 261 

Whew! "what a long tail our cat has got!" I believe he once 
made a similar threat towards General Jackson, but I never 
heard that he carried it into execution! 

I shall long remember, my dear sir, your efficient services at 
Baltimore, in favor of our great friend, and I shall gratefully 
cherish them, until a fitting opportunity offers to do something 
for you in return. 

Hoping to hear from you occasionally as the fight progresses 
in the "Star of the East," 

I am, most truly. 
Your friend, 

George Hitt. 

The victory of Pierce was so great that even the Demo- 
crats were astounded. The Whigs carried only five states, 
and it is interesting to note that Pennsylvania was not one 
of them. The electoral vote stood 2 54 against 42 . It was 
the largest majority since the so-called era of good feeling. 
The reason of this great triumph was undoubtedly the 
unreserved endorsement by the Democrats of the com- 
promise measures. The country was tired of the slavery 
agitation. It believed that the question had been settled 
and ended as a political issue. The party had come 
into power as the peace maker. It had the support of 
the business interests of the nation. It seemed to have 
a great mission to perform, to lead onward and upward to 
a greater prosperity and a more stable union. How soon 
were these hopes to be shattered ! ^ 

For the next six years Mr. Clifford was to lead the life 
of a private citizen. Whether during the administration 
of President Pierce he aspired to an appointed office, at all 
events he made one more try for the Senate, being a candi- 
date against William Pitt Fessenden in 1853.' He was 
unsuccessful, but continued to take a leading part in all 

' Rhodes, vol. i., page 277. 

* Hatch, History of Maine, vol. ii., page 362. 



262 Life of Nathan Clifford 

political activities. The trial of Neal Dow belongs to this 
period and is characteristic of the times. * 

In 1851 ^ the Maine Prohibitory law had been amended, 
granting extensive powers of search, which the Democrats 
felt conflicted with private rights. In 1 855 Neal Dow, the 
author of the statute, was mayor of Portland, and had 
ordered certain liquor for the City Agency, which was 
stored in the basement of the City Hall. The claim was 
made that he had violated his own enactment and war- 
rants were sworn out for the seizure of the liquor and for 
his arrest. As a result of this action, a crowd had collected 
at the City Hall, and in a short time the place was in the 
grip of a mob. Lawlessness resulted, the militia was called 
out and eventually fired on the rioters, wounding several. 

A public meeting was called and addressed by Nathan 
Clifford and F. O. J. Smith. The latter demanded the 
resignation of the mayor. On the next day the mayor 
was tried. Mr. Clifford appeared for the prosecution. 
William Pitt Fessenden defended. The respondent was 
dismissed on the ground that the city had authorized the 
purchase. 

This period was also signaHzed by the publishing of 
Uncle Tom's Cabin, the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska 
Act and the consequent repeal of the Missouri Com- 
promise, and the Dred Scott decision. In order to 
understand Mr. Clifford's attitude, a brief survey of events 
is necessary. The country was at peace. Prosperity was 
visible everywhere . The slavery question seemed to be set- 
tled, and the hope of those who had set such store on the 
Compromise of 1850 seemed in the process of realization. 
Into this comparative quiet was thrown a bombshell. ^ 

> Hatch, History of Maine, vol. ii., pages 383-385. 

2 Laws of Maine, 1846, chapter 205. Also Laws of Maine, 1848, chapter 
67. Laws of Maine, 185 1, chapter 211. 

3 Rhodes, vol. i., page 428. 



i849-i858 263 

It will be remembered that the Missouri Compromise 
had prohibited slavery in all the country acquired by the 
Louisiana purchase north of the parallel of 36^30', except 
so much as lay within the State of Missouri. The terri- 
tory of Nebraska was within that part dedicated to freedom, 
and included the present states of Kansas, Nebraska, the 
Dakotas, Montana, a portion of Colorado, and Wyoming. ' 

Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois was the chairman of the 
Senate committee on territories. In 1853, a bill was 
introduced into the Senate for the organization of the 
Territory of Nebraska, making no mention of the question 
of slavery, and was referred in the natural course to the 
committee of which Douglas was chairman. On January 
4, 1854, he made a report which questioned the validity of 
the Missouri Act in view of the subsequent passage of 
the Compromise Measures of 1850, and providing that 
Nebraska or any portion thereof when admitted as a state 
"shall be received into the Union with or without slavery," 
as its constitution should prescribe at the time. Such a 
measure was in direct violation of the law of 1820, 
admitting Missouri, which had been looked upon since 
that date as having the force of an article of the 
Constitution. ^ 

On January 23d, he offered a substitute for his preceding 
bill. It stated that the restriction in the act of 1820 was 
superseded by the principles of that of 1850, and divided 
the territory in two parts, caUing the northern portion 
Nebraska and the southern Kansas. ^ 

The answer to the proceedings of Douglas was the 
address of "Independent Democrats in Congress to the 
People of the United States," written largely by Chase. 
It called the Nebraska act a "gross violation of a sacred 
pledge " and goes on to say in a postscript written after the 

' Rhodes, vol. i., page 426. 

' Ibid., pages 425-429. ^ Ibid., page 439. 



264 Life of Nathan Clifford 

introduction of the substitute of January 23d, that no 
person in 1850 pretended that the act of that year would 
repeal the Missouri Compromise. ' 

It is difficult to understand the contention of those who 
insisted upon the . inconsistency of the two enactments. 
That of 1850 was said to be based on the view that the 
inhabitants of the different territories could determine 
whether their states should be slave or free, yet there was 
no such stipulation in the different bills, and no person at 
the time of their passage had any idea of them other than 
that they were a settlement of the difficulties then disturb- 
ing the country. The theory of "squatter sovereignty" 
was inconsistent with legislation regarding slavery for 
territories, whether such laws be in favor of or against the 
custom. Still there was nothing in the Compromise of 
1850 to show that this idea was intended to be carried to 
the extent of establishing a precedent for future legislation, 
and certainly no intimation is made of an intention to 
repeal existing laws. However, the Kansas-Nebraska 
Act was passed with slight verbal changes, made for the 
purpose of satisfying some Northern Democrats. As a 
settlement, it was a nullity. No sooner had it become a 
law than the question was raised as to when the people 
of the territories were to ' ' regulate their domestic institu- 
tions," the southern view being that such determination 
was to be made at the time of the admission as a state, thus 
allowing slaveholders a chance to move into the territory, 
while the northern idea was that such action should be 
taken by the first settlers. 

This book is not a life of Douglas, and therefore cannot 
go too fully into his motives and purposes in the Kansas- 
Nebraska episode. One cannot fail to feel, however, that 
he was aiming at the Presidency, and used this means 
to make himself secure with the South. Clifford and 

' Rhodes, vol. i., page 490. 



i849-iB58 265 

Douglas were not far apart in their original beliefs as to 
slavery. They both belonged to the class of Democrats 
who supported the idea of "Squatter" or "Popular Sover- 
eignty." The theory carried to its conclusion, and if 
treated as an underlying principle of the Constitution, 
undoubtedly led one to the ground from which the 
Missouri Compromise seemed in conflict with that instru- 
ment. On the other hand, if considered merely as a 
scheme by which the slavery question was to be handled 
in the future, it need not be dignified by implied incorpo- 
ration in the document, and could serve as a useful working 
basis so long as it was not in conflict with the principles 
thereof. 

This latter belief was, in truth, exactly what the origi- 
nators of the scheme meant it to be. There was no idea 
at the time of the passage of the Compromise Measures of 
1850 that they established any constitutional theory 
which should have the force of an implied power. It was 
not until Douglas came out with his astounding scheme 
for the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, that such an 
idea began to have circulation. 

The theory did not capture a large part of the Northern 
Democrats. Clifford was opposed to Douglas. The 
mere fact that the latter was disrupting the party when all 
difficulties seemed removed and a period of great prosper- 
ity and plain sailing under a united banner seemed assured 
for it, was enough in Mr. Clifford's eyes to subject him to 
the greatest criticism. If for no other reason, Clifford would 
have disagreed with a man who deliberately stirred up the 
very agitation which all good patriots had been trying to 
allay. When quiet seemed to have been restored and the 
country assured of a period of rest and prosperity, to 
plunge it purposely into a state of turmoil, was, to say the 
least, bad judgment. 

These two facts alone are enough to have caused him to 



266 Life of Nathan Clifford 

oppose Douglas, but we also know that he was a follower 
of Buchanan. The latter has left to posterity the state- 
ment of his views, that although down to this period he 
considered the anti-slavery party of the North had been 
the assailants and kept the people of the South in constant 
irritation, yet "in sustaining the repeal of the Missouri 
Compromise the senators and representatives of the 
southern states became the aggressors themselves."* 
Such were without doubt Mr. Clifford's views. 

While these events were taking place, Mr. Buchanan 
was minister to England.^ Therefore he was the most 
logical man the Democrats could run for the next president. 
At the convention of 1856, he was nominated on the 
seventeenth ballot. He was the best choice the party 
could have made at the time. 

The platform of 1856 adopted "the principles contained 
in the organic laws establishing the territories of Nebraska 
and Kansas as embodying the only sound and safe solution 
of the slavery question."^ On this statement of faith 
Buchanan was elected. Mr. Clifford stumped eastern 
Maine for him. The ratification of the Kansas-Nebraska 
Act caused the final split among the Maine Democrats. 
It was during this campaign that the Republican Party 
first came into being. John C. Fremont, the son-in-law 
of Thomas H. Benton of Missouri, was the candidate of 
that party. The time had not yet arrived for a Republican 
victory, however, though the result in Maine was in their 
favor. Hannibal Hamlin carried'' the party to victory 
and was elected governor. Many men, however, who 
later joined the Republican ranks voted at this time for 
Buchanan, as the only man who represented both North 
and South. They objected to Fremont on the ground 

' G. T. Curtis, Life of Buchanan, vol. ii., page 196. 

' Rhodes, vol. ii., page 170. ^Ibid., page 171. 

4 Life and Times of Hannibal Hamlin, page 286. 



i849-i858 267 

that his following was sectional, and that his election 
would lead to a disruption of the Union. Even Benton, a 
strong anti-slavery man, could not support his son-in-law 
for this reason. 

Mr, Buchanan's campaign was the last in which Mr. 
Clifford took part. His long services to the party were 
soon to be rewarded. In the following letters we recognize 
old friends : 

My Dear Sir: 

I delivered your letter to the President, & had a few minutes' 
conversation with reference to the Judgeship, but he said 
nothing from which I could fairly infer his intention. I 
sincerely hope, however, he will appoint you, & whatever, in 
my humble way, I can do to produce that result, I will do & 
do it heartily. This is strong language from me but it ex- 
presses my meaning. 

I am deeply pained that one whom you so materially aided, 
& who promised so much should have cheated you in Portland. 
It is gratifying, however, to learn that the treachery is not 
likely to do practical mischief. 

As soon as I can get any further news on this subject, you 
shall hear from me 

In haste 

Very truly 

John Appleton 

Washington Septr. nth, 1857 
Hon. N. Clifford 
&c &c &c 



Washington Nov 12th 1857 
Dear Sir: 

Upon communicating with Mr Macdonald after my return 
to the City & hearing such a favorable report in regard to the 
Judgeship, I thought I would not attempt to converse with the 
Prest for some days, unless the opportunity was highly favor- 
able — Accordingly I deferred it until two days ago, when I 



268 Life of Nathan Clifford 

had a better chance to speak to him about it than I had an- 
ticipated, & was able to talk with much more freedom than I 
supposed I should when I saw you — . He did not say a great 
deal, but listened with apparent satisfaction & all that he did 
say was highly favorable, & fully confirms the impression given 
to Mr. Macdonald, and I am decidedly of opinion that the 
matter now is all right — What may transpire in the month 
intervening before the nomination will go in, I cannot predict, 
but see no reason to apprehend any change unfavorable to you. 
Mr Appleton will know of all that occurs & will give every- 
thing the most favorable turn. I am entirely satisfied from 
what the Prest did say, that you have acted wisely in leaving 
the matter wholly in his hands, & that any exhibition of over 
anxiety on your part would be injurious rather than beneficial. 
It has always seemed to me that when he should look over 
the whole ground he could come to no other result than that 
of your appt, and I am now fully confirmed in the behef that his 
inclinations will correspond with the convictions of his judge- 
ment. No such thing as you mentioned to me has occurred 
or will occur, and I am persuaded the report was wholly with- 
out foundation. 

What I can do in the matter amounts to so little that I am 
almost ashamed to trouble you with a letter — It is needless 
to say that if further opportunity occurs you shall have the 
benefit of my mite 

Very truly 
Yours 

H. J. Anderson 
Hon N. Clifford 



Nov. 25th/57 
My Dear Sir: 

You will be nominated as soon as the Senate is ready to 
receive nominations. There can be no doubt of this, & you 
may safely proceed quietly to make your arrangements. You 
will not wish to come, I suppose in advance of the appoint- 
ment, but you ought to know in advance. Don't let the 



I 849- I 858 269 

Argus follow Forney in his wrong direction. The President & 
Cabinet are united & the other way. 
You shall hear from me again tomorrow. 

In haste 
Yours truly 

John Appleton. 



Plymouth Jany 12th. 1858 
My Dear Sir: 

Allow me to congratulate you on your appointment to the 
distinguished position of Judge of the Supreme Court of the 
United States — a situation for which you are eminently 
qualified, and which will, we fondly hope, secure to our 
Country for many years the benefit of your Talents, Experi- 
ence and Integrity. 

The carping of . . . Greely and others of that " ilk " is of itself 
conclusive evidence that a good selection has been made, for 
there is nothing which these fellows more dread than a Judici- 
ary who will fearlessly and impartially expound the meaning of 
the Constitution. Their chief reliance is, and has ever been, 
in conferring upon that Instrument the Protean Elasticity 
which characterized their own Political Creed. . . . 

Very Respeccfully & Sincerely 
Your Most Obt Servt 

Samuel A. Burns. 
Hon. Nathan Clifford. 



CHAPTER X 
Justice of the Supreme Court 

Mr. Clifford was appointed to the Supreme Court of 
the United States by commission dated January 12, 1858. ' 
He took his seat on the twenty-first day of the same month, 
and was assigned to the first circuit, which comprised 
Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Is- 
land. This was the culmination of his career as a pubHc 
man. 

To say that the choice was well received would be to 
distort facts. He occupied the place recently vacated by 
the resignation of Justice Benjamin R. Curtis, ^ the writer 
of a dissenting opinion in the Dred Scott case, a man of 
great intellectual abilities, of polished manners, and, in 
short, of a type particularly acceptable to the highly cul- 
tured, university educated, Boston society. The differ- 
ences between the two men, both in point of early life, 
education, environment and political beliefs, were as 
marked as possible. To the somewhat self-sufficient aris- 
tocracy of the New England metropolis the change was 
not for the better. In the minds of RepubHcans through- 
out the northeastern states. Judge Clifford was a pro- 
slavery Southern sympathizer. 

Two years before, the presidential election had been 
held, the last for twenty-eight years to result in the in- 
auguration of a Democrat. Fremont had carried an 
overwhelming number of northern states, but Buchanan 

' The only Justice Maine has ever had. * Rhodes, vol. ii., page 251. 
270 



Justice of the Supreme Court 271 

had won by the vote of the soHd South, of Pennsylvania, 
Indiana and lUinois. ^ In spite of a strong majority of 
electoral votes, the position of the party was not seciire. 
"Bleeding Kansas" became a running sore, and Judge 
Douglas and Buchanan quarrelled.^ The Democracy 
split. There was an overheated feeling in the country 
generally. Judge Clifford belonged to the anti-Douglas 
wing of the party. Therefore opposition was not confined 
to the Republicans alone. "Pot-house Democratic 
politician," "a miserable dough-face," "a northern man 
with southern principles, " " a mere demagogue, ' ' were some 
of the terms applied to him by newspapers at the time. 
It has been said that no man ever went upon the Supreme 
Bench amid such a deluge of abuse as did Judge Clifford. 
However, his nomination was finally confirmed, and by 
the aid of those who differed from him in political belief. 
His opponent of a lifetime, William Pitt Fessenden, spoke 
and voted in his favor. ^ 

In addition to such unreasonable objections there were 
others which at first thought might be justified. Who was 
Judge Clifford ? Attorney General under Polk for a short 
time and later minister to Mexico, of course, but what were 
his qualifications as a lawyer? The records showed that 
he had never acted as counsel in the trial of an admiralty 
or a patent case. Was this the proper man to place upon 
the highest tribunal in the country? 

While it might be admitted that such fears were natural, 
though as subsequent events showed, unfounded, it should 
be borne in mind that appointments to the Supreme Court 
are made on other grounds of fitness than mere success 
as a practicing attorney. A large and most important 
part of the work of that body is passing upon the con- 
stitutionality of questions brought before it. In this 

' Rhodes, vol. ii., page 235. ^ Ibid., page 287. 

3 Hatch, vol. ii., page 404. 



272 Life of Nathan Clifford 

function, it is the pioneer tribunal of the world. ' At the 
time of the adoption of the Constitution the idea that a 
judiciary should have the power to declare void certain 
acts of a legislature was entirely new. No such power 
exists to-day in England, where an act of Parliament is the 
supreme law of the land, and no bench at present exercises 
that right to the extent, and with the far-reaching con- 
sequences customary to the Supreme Court of the United 
States. 

These circumstances, which are not always realized by 
persons who freely criticize the selection of justices, make 
two qualities essential to the nominee to the highest 
American tribunal. First, because of the opposite views 
as to the construction of the Constitution already referred 
to, the President of the United States is bound to choose 
a man thoroughly saturated with the tenets of the faction 
in power. To do otherwise would be folly, for if one be- 
Heves that a strict adherence to the letter of the instru- 
ment is the only safe course for the ship to steer, the eleva- 
tion of a man of opposite persuasion would be the doing of 
an act detrimental to the country. Secondly, owing to 
the peculiar nature of the power of the court, statesmanlike 
abilities are of the very highest importance. 

At no time in the history of the nation had political 
partisanship been more strictly adhered to than in the 
period just preceding the Civil War. The Republican 
party had come into being with the avowed purpose of 
putting an end to the extension of slavery. In Democra- 
tic eyes the agitation of this question had been the cause of 
all the trouble and controversies which had arisen in 
Congress since the Missouri Compromise. Negro servi- 
tude was a local institution; and right or wrong, the 
central government had no legal means of ending it. It 

• De Toqueville, Democracy in America, vol. i., page 98. Goodnow, 
Principles of Constitutional Government, pages 232-3. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 273 

was a most dangerous and subversive doctrine, this one 
of the new group, and yet it was gaining strength and 
power every day. The Hberty of the citizens and the 
integrity of the Union demanded that the men who had to 
interpret the laws of the land in the last instance should be 
of the true faith. They must not only be Democrats; 
they must believe in Jacksonian principles as in a creed, if 
the country was to be saved. 

The two qualities above mentioned were very markedly 
in evidence in the character of Judge Clifford. From the 
time of his admission to the bar he had clung to his party 
with a tenacity and devotion almost religious. In his 
eyes its doctrines could preserve the union of the states. 
Adoption of other principles would destroy it. His suc- 
cessful administration of the difficult Mexican mission 
had shown the breadth of his views. He was no mere 
politician. He had proved himself to be a statesman with 
strong Democratic convictions. Moreover, he had never 
failed to maintain with credit a position to which he had 
been elevated, no matter how strange to him the same 
might be. 

Beyond all this, the man who knew most about these 
characteristics was now President of the United States. 
Association in the cabinet of President Polk, and later 
service in Mexico under Buchanan as chief, had impressed 
the latter (even though the two men had not agreed as to 
the conduct of the Mexican War), with the fitness of Mr. 
Clifford for the vacancy on the bench. He probably felt, 
as did the Federalists at the expiration of the term of the 
elder Adams, that the times were demanding men of a 
different political faith, wrong though such a call was, 
and that the only way in which the tide could be stemmed 
was by the appointment of persons who would interpret 
the laws, fearlessly and determinedly, along the lines of 
conservative beliefs. It was equally important that no 



274 Life of Nathan Clifford 

narrow charlatan should be selected for this high office 
at a time when Democratic doctrines could hope to live 
only if explained by men of broad statesmanHke vision. 
In a man possessing such qualifications, a lack of expe- 
rience in certain lines of practice was easily remedied. 

Again if the appointee was to exercise a great influence 
on the course of events, he ought to be young enough to be 
assured of a fairly long term on the bench. Mr. Clifford 
was fifty-four years of age, in perfect health, and possessed 
a rugged constitution with which hard work seemed to 
agree. 

The following letter no doubt refers to the opposition 
to his selection, and gives a picture of the state of mind 
of the new judge: 

Boston June 21, 1858 

My Dear Wife: 

I fear that I am writing so often that you will think I 
have entirely reformed my habit of neglect — it is not so 
however as the future will show — having just received a 
beautiful letter from Ch Jus Taney I thought I must send 
it to you & trust you will keep it as one among the most 
valuable letters we ever received. Read it to George 
Franklin and teach him to emulate the industry and purity 
of life which even now constitute the characteristics of 
his greatness. Every word of it breathes sincerity and 
friendship — He is truly my friend & that is honor enough 
at present — I had the honor to enjoy the friendship of 
Polk & am now proud of the friendship of Buchanan & 
Taney — Enemies, if any I have, cannot harm me while 
such men are my friends, and such they are & I trust will 
continue to be during our joint lives — I have also a letter 
from Mr. Shepley informing that the Insurance company 
at Edmanton have decided to pay my whole loss on the 
Colby property so that we shall soon be in funds — and 



Justice of the Supreme Court 275 

then you will get your trunk — my term here still promises 
to be a pleasant one. No question has been presented that 
will give me much trouble — Cases are argued here with 
great abiHty — Mr. Choate is in the next case — I have 
not heard him yet — Judge Curtis has argued two cases 
& I learn has four more for argument — He is very able — 
& so is Sidney Bartlett Esq — & Mr. C. F. Loring — 
Very truly 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

In order to appreciate Judge Clifford's service upon the 
court, the influence which he wielded and the unique posi- 
tion which he occupied there, a study of its personnel is 
necessary. In 1858, Taney was chief justice. Appointed 
by Jackson in 1835, he was number six in the line (if Rut- 
ledge, who was not confirmed and Cushing who never sat, 
be counted). He was the immediate successor of John 
Marshall. He represented the swing of the pendulum 
from Federalist implied powers to Jeffersonian strict 
construction. 

The other justices were James M. Wayne of Georgia, 
John McLean of Ohio, and John Catron of Tennessee, 
all three appointed by Jackson; Peter V. Daniel of Vir- 
ginia, Samuel Nelson of New York, Robert C. Grier of 
Pennsylvania, and John A. Campbell of Alabama, nomi- 
nated by Van Buren, Tyler, Polk and Pierce respectively. 
Thus the chief justice and six of the seven associates were 
the choice of Democratic presidents, and Judge Nelson 
was of that beHef . Judge Clifford lived to see all these men 
die or resign, until he became the sole surviving appointee 
of a Democratic executive, the only man whose commis- 
sion antedated the Civil War, the single link which bound 
the court to the times of Jackson. To one of such strong 
convictions his position thus became a sacred trust ; to use 



276 Life of Nathan Clifford 

what power he had to keep alive the flickering flame of the 
faith to which his first and abiding allegiance had been 
sworn. To this task he set himself steadfastly, never 
hesitating to write a dissenting opinion when the decision 
of the majority seemed to him to be contrary to the true 
principles of the Constitution. His influence with his as- 
sociates was tremendous. His age, long experience, his 
integrity and high character, his unfailing courtesy and 
absolute fairness, gave him a standing second to none, in 
spite of his political beliefs. During the illness and ab- 
sence, and after the death, of Chief Justice Chase, he 
became the acting head of the court. There was a desire 
expressed by his friends that he might be offered this 
supreme honor. Such a culmination of his career was, 
however, under all circumstances im.possible. His long 
life drew to its close ; while he, refusing to resign and accept 
from the government he had served so faithfully the life 
of ease' to which he was entitled, fought on, but died too 
soon to see the accomplishment of the hope of his later 
years, the return to power of the party whose standard he 
had always followed. There is a pathos in the picture of 
the old warrior with his back against the wall struggling 
against tendencies which he could not overcome, and one's 
sympathy goes out to him as to John Marshall during the 
last years of his judgeship when he found himself in a simi- 
lar situation as to Federalist doctrines. ^ 

The first break in the membership of the court came with 
the death of Judge Daniel in 1 860 ; ^ the second with that of 
Judge McLean in 1861. In the latter year. Judge Camp- 
bell felt called upon to resign his commission. He was a be- 
liever in the right of secession, though he deemed the act 

' U. S. Statutes at Large, Act of April 10, 1869. 
' Beveridge, Life of Marshall, vol. iv., pages 514-515. 
3 As to dates of incumbency of various justices, see The Nat. Cyc. of Am. 
Biog. Index, page 73. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 277 

ill advised. Holding such views, he felt that his honor 
forbade his longer association with men who differed from 
him. He followed his state into the ranks of the confed- 
eracy after remonstrances from Judge Clifford as to his 
beliefs, apparent from the following letters. 

Washington City 
April 1 8th 1861 

My Dear Sir: 

Events at present look so threatening & the hopes of peace 
so remote that I suppose it will soon become necessary for me 
to make my final decision. I therefore acquaint you with the 
fact, so that you should not be surprised by anything I should do. 

I long apprehended that a collision of arms would take place 
at Sumter unless there wa ^^ something done to avoid it. The 
day after the adjournment of the Supreme Court (15 March) 
Judge Nelson — who you recollect agreed to remain to further 
the counsels of peace — informed me that the demand upon 
the administration by the commissoners of the Confederate 
States for recognition was an embarrassment, & might disturb 
a peaceful solution of the difficulties. I told him I knew Judge 
Crawford one of the commissioners and could advise him with- 
out diffidence in reference to such a matter — We had to- 
gether intercourse in such a quarter, and with such a result 
that I said to Judge Crawford the same day with his 
approbation 

I feel entire confidence that Fort Sumter will be evacuated 
in five days & that this is felt as imposing great responsibility 
on the administration 

I feel confident that no measure changing the existing status 
of things prejudicially to the Southern Confederate States is, at 
present contemplated 

I feel entire confidence that an immediate demand for an 
answer to the communication will be productive of evil & 
not of good. I do not believe that it ought at this time to be 
pressed. I earnestly ask for a delay until the effect of the 
evacuation of Fort Sumter can be ascertained. 

The substance of this communication was made known the 



278 Life of Nathan Clifford 

same day to the same quarter referred to & the demand for an 
answer was not pressed. Five days passed over — The 
commissioners telegraphed to Charleston to ascertain if the 
fort was evacuated, or likely to be & Genl Beauregard replied 
No, but that Anderson was then repairing it. I was called 
on & Judge Nelson being still here — another visit was made 

I replied to the Commissioners — That Sumter would be 
evacuated — The failure to do so was not in bad faith nor 
for any cause, incompatible with the purpose to do so, as 
previously stated & that I should have notice of a change in 
the status — Judge N heard all that I heard and read my 
communications, & sanctioned them During the few days 
that followed, preparations were apparently in progress for 
evacuation — Messengers went backward & forward & Col 
Lamon now marshal of this district made a special visit — On 
the 30th March Gov Pickens sent a telegraph that Lamon had 
not returned as was expected — Why was not Sumter evacu- 
ated? — I delivered this telegram. Was told that Lamon's 
visit had no significance & he had no authority to make 
arrangements — & "That no attempt would be made to 
supply Sumter without notice to Gov Pickens" — This was 
the first of April. 

During that week preparations were made to supply Sumter 
— Supplies men stopped at Sumter — Notice was given 8th 
of April that Sumter would be supplied — Demand for the 
evacuation of Sumter was made on the nth Refusal took 
place — Civil War — 

I suppose that you may have no knowledge of these facts 
They must soon be made known. I do not mention any name 
except that of Judge Nelson for obvious reasons. 

I suppose the great excitement that rages at the North will 
soon subside & that sober counsels will resume their sway 

I shall remain here some days so please write to me, at this 
place Very truly your friend 

J A Campbell 
Hon Nathan Clifford 
Portland 
Maine 



Justice of the Supreme Court 279 

Washington City 
29 April 1 861 

Dear Sir : 

I have reed your kind letter — I regret to differ from you, 
in respect to the course of conduct I ought to pursue but I 
find that my deference to the wishes of others have almost 
consigned me to disgrace among my own people. 

I regret to resign, principally as it diminishes the intimacy 
of those relations, which have grown up, among the members 
of the court & from which I have derived much happiness — 
I prize very highly your friendship, which I trust will not be 
determined by the dissolution of our official connections. 

This administration seems determined to have a sectional 
war — The blockade of Virginia & North Carolina must result 
in the scission of the Union along the whole line between the 
slave & non slave states 

I suppose the Congress at Montgomery will formally declare 
war — What will the end be ? 

The frightful excitement at the North has stimulated the 
administration to desperate measures & there is a party in the 
confederate States equally desperate — Oh for peace peace 

With many wishes for your happiness believe me 

Truly your friend 

J. A. Campbell. 
Mr. Justice Clifford 

Buchanan retired from office, leaving vacant the chair 
formerly occupied by Daniel, and Lincoln hesitated at first 
to appoint Northern men to fill judgeships previously held 
by Southerners." However, in 1862, he did nominate 
Swayne of Ohio, Miller of Iowa, and Davis of Illinois ; and 
in 1863, Stephen J. Field of California was added to the 
bench as the tenth justice under the act of March 3, 1863. * 
From this time till the death of the venerable Chief Justice 
in 1864 no changes occurred. Then Salmon P. Chase was 

' Life of Salmon P. Chase (Am. Statesmen Series), pages 324-325. 
^ U. S. Statutes at Large. 



28o Life of Nathan Clifford 

appointed in Taney's place. Judge Catron died in 1865, 
Judge Wayne in 1867, Judge Nelson resigned in 1872, and 
Judge Grier, in 1869 to take effect 1870. Thus in fifteen 
years every one of Judge Clifford's original colleagues were 
removed from the court, leaving him alone as the represen- 
tative of the old regime. 

From 1865 to 1869 no nominations were made, so that 
the bench, during these years, consisted of Lincoln's five 
selections together with Clifford, Grier, Nelson, and up to 
1867, Wayne. By act of July 23, 1866, ' no appointments 
could be made to the Supreme Court until the number of 
associate justices was reduced to six, and it was then to 
consist of a chief and seven associates. In 1869 the law 
was again amended, increasing its size to a chief justice 
and eight others. ^ Under this law Grant had two vacan- 
cies to fill after the resignation of Judge Grier, and accord- 
ingly selected, in 1870, Strong of Pennsylvania and Brad- 
ley of New Jersey. In 1872 Hunt of New York took 
Nelson's seat and in 1877 Harlan of Kentucky came on in 
place of Davis. In 1874, the honor of chief justice was con- 
ferred on Morrison R. Waite of Ohio. On the resignation 
of Strong, Woods of Georgia was nominated by Hayes. 
While all these new judges were from the Republican 
ranks, Clifford was not alone in his beliefs. Whether 
through his influence, or for other causes, it is impossi- 
ble to state, yet, Field and Davis after their appointments 
were commonly classed as Democrats, and Chase's later 
opinions show a leaning to that side. 

An analysis of the constitutional decisions of the Su- 
preme Court from 1864 to 1867 indicate that its opinions 
were still democratic by a small margin. In the case of ex 
parte Milligan (4 Wall., 142), 1866, it was held that Con- 
gress could not authorize military tribunals in districts 

I U. S. Statutes at Large. 
^ Ihid., Act of April 10, 1869. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 281 

where civil courts were open. The majority consisted of 
Davis, Field, Clifford, Nelson and Grier. Those in dissent 
were Chase, Wayne, Swayne and Miller. In ex parte Gar- 
land (4 Wall., 333), 1867, and Cummings vs. Missouri 
(4 Wall., 277), 1867, in which the so-called test oaths were 
held unconstitutional, the division was almost the same: 
Field, Clifford, Nelson, Grier and Wayne against Chase, 
Swayne, Davis and Miller. 

Upon the death of Judge Wayne in 1867, the court was 
evenly divided unless Judge Davis should be swung over 
permanently to the conservative view. He had decided 
with the majority in the Milligan case, but later with the 
minority. Three suits were pending on the question of the 
validity of the reconstruction acts, and speculation was 
rife as to the probable results. In two of the cases, how- 
ever, the judges unanimously refused to take jurisdiction 
on the ground, in the first, that there could be no inter- 
ference with executive discretion, and in the second, on 
the theory that they could not pass on a purely political 
question. The third case was dismissed from the docket 
because Congress, before the decision, took away certain 
of the appellate powers, ' of the Court. 

After the failure of the impeachment proceedings against 
Johnson and after the appointment of Strong and Bradley, 
the character of the tribunal became strongly Republican. 
This is best illustrated by the so-called legal tender 
decisions. 

An act of February 25, 1862, authorized the issue of 
notes of the United States which should be legal tender for 
the payment of all debts. The bill had been passed with 
the consent of Chase ^ while he was Secretary of the Treas- 
ury. It was deemed by him at the time to be necessary 
and constitutional. Other similar acts were later passed. 

' Salmon P. Chase, Am. Statesmen Series, pages 348-350. 
' Ibid., page 247. 



282 Life of Nathan Clifford 

The first judicial construction of this law was in Lane 
County vs. Oregon (7 Wall., 71), February 8, 1869. The 
court here held that the acts had no application to taxes 
imposed by state authority. Again in Bronson vs. Rhodes 
(7 Wall., 229), February 15, 1869, the judges pronounced 
the enactments not applicable to contracts which specified 
that payments thereunder should be made in gold and 
silver coin. In both cases the Chief Justice delivered the 
opinion, in the first, without a dissent. In the second, 
Miller disagreed with the majority, and Davis and Swayne, 
while siding with Chase, somewhat limited their concur- 
rence. 

Both these causes showed, in a measure, that the court 
was working toward a decision which should hold the legal 
tender acts unconstitutional. Gold was at a premium, 
and as a practical matter, the laws were a two-edged sword, 
cutting both ways. If they were held valid, a person con- 
tracting before the passage of the acts, and expecting gold 
or silver in payment, might be obliged to accept paper 
currency which was in circulation at a considerable shrink- 
age from par; while, on the other hand, if they were de- 
clared unconstitutional, the person who had contracted in 
contemplation of the law and had expected to pay in 
paper might be called upon to pay in specie of much greater 
value. 

The question as to the use of the notes in obligations 
made prior to the passage of the bills came squarely before 
the court in Hepburn vs. Griswold (8 Wall., 603), Febru- 
ary 7, 1870, before appointment of either Strong or 
Bradley. Judge Grier sat during the hearing. The deci- 
sion, delivered by Chase, was to the effect that as to such 
contracts the law was unconstitutional, the ground being 
that no enactment subsequently passed could make valid 
a kind of payment not contemplated at the date of the 
agreement. The language of the Chief Justice, however, is 



Justice of the Supreme Court 283 

sufficiently broad in some instances to cover all contracts, 
whether prior or subsequent. A dissent was written by 
Miller; Swayne and Davis agreeing with him. Therefore 
the majority of the court consisted of Chase, Clifford, 
Field, Nelson, and Grier, who did not resign till after the 
case was determined, though he was not on the bench at 
the time the opinion was read. 

After the appointment of Bradley and Strong, there was 
great pressure brought to bear on the court to overrule its 
previous decision. It was well known that both the new 
appointees believed in the constitutionality of the notes. 
There were several cases pending which could be used as 
pretexts for re-hearing, and though Chase, Clifford, Field 
and Nelson opposed the project, the very unusual pro- 
ceeding was finally adopted, it is said, at the instance of 
Judge Bradley. * 

The cause selected to be the vanquisher of the doctrines 
announced in Hepburn vs. Griswold, was Latham vs. 
United States. The Lathams had a contract with the 
government, dated 1855, stipulating that payments were 
to be made in "good and lawful money of the coin of the 
United States. ' ' Chase, as Secretary of the Treasury, had, 
in 1863, refused to pay them specie and had tendered 
greenbacks which had been received under protest. Suits 
had been instituted for the difference in value between the 
notes and gold. 

When Latham vs. United States came up for argument, 
the counsel for the plaintiff refused to proceed, insisting 
that the rights of his clients were fully established by 
Hepburn vs. Griswold. In the course of the proceedings, the 
Chief Justice announced that the court had agreed that 
the decision in Hepburn vs. Griswold should apply to all 
later cases. Justice Miller thereupon contradicted Chase, 
saying that such a statement was untrue and represented 

^ Salmon P. Chase, American Statesmen Series, page 402. 



284 Life of Nathan Clifford 

the ideas of the speaker and not of the whole bench. The 
different judges then expressed themselves regarding their 
memory of the incident in a somewhat undignified way, 
and in a manner showing almost hostility between the 
two factions. ^ The case was, however, dismissed against 
the protest of Bradley. 

The determination to have Hepburn vs. Griswold over- 
ruled was not overcome, and the new judges finally carried 
their point by getting the court to hear arguments in Knox 
vs. Lee and Parker vs. Davis (12 Wall., 457), commonly 
known as the legal tender cases. A decision was handed 
down May i, 1871, in which the acts were declared con- 
stitutional and the conclusions arrived at in Hepburn vs. 
Griswold flatly overruled. The bench divided, Justice 
Strong speaking for the majority, comprising also Bradley, 
Miller, Swayne and Davis, while Chase, Clifford, Field 
and Nelson dissented. 

Judge Clifford wrote an opinion, pointing out, in addi- 
tion to the unconstitutionality of the acts, the fact of the 
dangerous practice of reversing a decision in so short a 
period. He considered this as one of the best ever de- 
livered by him and always referred to it with pride and a 
firm conviction as to its correctness. The matter should 
not be dismissed without mention of the extraordinary 
situation presented by having the Chief Justice pass on 
the constitutionaHty of measures enacted with his consent 
while he was Secretary of the Treasury. It took great 
courage for Chase to act as he did. However one may 
feel as to his opinion, one must commend him for not being 
afraid to live up to the highest ideals of the tribunal on 
which he sat, regardless of the consequences to his own 
reputation. The reader feels that the Chief Justice is 
speaking for himself when he uses the following language 
at the close of his opinion in Hepburn vs. Griswold: 

' Salmon P. Chase, Am. Statesmen Series, page 403. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 285 

"It is not surprising that amid the tumult of the late 
Civil War, and under the influence of apprehensions for 
the safety of the Republic almost universal, different 
views, never before entertained by American statesmen or 
jurists, were adopted by many. The time was not favor- 
able to considerate reflection upon the constitutional 
limits of legislative or executive authority. If power was 
assumed from patriotic motives, the assumption found 
ready justification in patriotic hearts. Many who doubted 
yielded their doubts; many who did not doubt were silent. 
Some who were strongly averse to making government 
notes a legal tender felt themselves constrained to ac- 
quiesce in the views of the advocates of the measure. Not 
a few who then insisted upon its necessity or acquiesced 
in that view, have, since the return of peace, and under the 
influence of the calmer time, reconsidered their conclu- 
sions, and now concur in those which we have just an- 
nounced."' 

It is hard to conceive of a more difficult position than 
the one occupied by Judge Clifford during the war. Im- 
bued as he was with the tenets of his own party, accused of 
being in sympathy with South, condemned by Demo- 
crats as well as Republicans ; to hold the scales of justice 
evenly, to enforce his ideas where possible in his decisions, 
at the same time supporting the government in the prose- 
cution of the war, was a task to try the nerves and tax 
the strength of a very giant. Yet this was exactly what he 
did, and no word of criticism was ever uttered as to his 
absolute loyalty and devotion to the administration in its 
trials. 

In proof of this statement one is referred to some of the 
litigation arising at this period respecting the extraordi- 
nary powers assumed by Congress and the executive in 

' Salmon P. Chase, American Statesmen Series, pages 395-396. 



286 Life of Nathan Clifford 

carrying on the war. In the "Grapeshot" (9 Wall., 129), 

1870, provisional courts set up by direction of the Presi- 
dent without legislative authority in parts of the seceded 
states were upheld. In United States vs. Kehler (9 Wall., 
83), 1870, the following language is used: 

"The whole confederate power must be regarded by us 
as a usurpation of unlawful authority, incapable of pass- 
ing any valid laws and certainly incapable of divesting by 
an Act of its Congress or an order of one of its departments, 
any right or property of the United States." 

In Hickman vs. Jones et al (9 Wall., 197), 1870, the de- 
cision speaks of the "pretended Government of the Con- 
federacy" and says ". . . . the act of the Confederate 
Congress creating the tribunal in question was void. It 
was as if it were not."' In United States vs. Anderson 
(9 Wall., 56), 1870, the court enforced the confiscation 
statutes and those for the collection of abandoned prop- 
erty, and in Miller vs. United States (11 Wall., 268), 

1 87 1, declined to allow jury trials in matters arising out 
of these laws on the ground that its acts were military in 
character under the power to declare war and make rules 
respecting captures. In White vs. Hart (13 Wall., 646), 

1872, the whole system of congressional reconstruction 
was approved and the idea of a Union "indestructible and 
perpetual" again affirmed. ^ Regarding financial legisla- 
tion, Veasie Bank vs. Fenno (8 Wall., 533), 1869, upheld 
the ten per cent tax on state bank notes, and Collector vs. 
Day (11 Wall., 113), 1 871, by implication, held an income 
tax constitutional. 3 In none of these cases did Judge 
Clifford dissent except in that of Miller vs. United States 
in which the question of jury trials was involved- 

» Salmon P. Chase, American Statesmen Series, page 375. 
» Ibid., page 380. ^Ibid., pages 386-388. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 287 

A great deal has been said, justly and unjustly, as to the 
stand of the Democrats of the northern states prior to and 
during the Civil War. The mere fact that a man wore the 
badge of this party was sufficient in some minds to dub 
him a copperhead and a traitor. The views of one who 
believed that each commonwealth had the right to with- 
draw from the Union at its pleasure and of those who held 
state sovereignty to be limited just short of this power were 
in many respects identical. Still there was this stongly 
marked difference of opinion, and comparatively few of 
that faith at the North considered secession to be a right 
of the states. 

In the case of Day vs. Buffington, reported in 3 Clifford, 
page 389, Judge Clifford gives his views on these matters. 
The expression of them in his own words seems to convey 
so much more conviction than any attempt at paraphrase 
can do that the following quotation is presented without 
further apology : 

' ' Unquestionably the Constitution and the laws of the 
United States made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties 
made under the authority of the United States, are the 
supreme law of the land, because it is so ordained in the 
Constitution, but the same instrument also provides that 
the powers not delegated to the United States by the 
Constitution nor prohibited by it to the States, are re- 
served to the states respectively or to the people, and it is 
an obvious rule of construction that these two provisions 
must be considered together in determining the question 
under consideration, as they are important provisions in 
the same instrument, and cannot be regarded as in any 
respect repugnant to each other. 

Counties and other municipal corporations were created 
by the States; but the States were not created by the 
United States, as the States existed as independent sover- 



288 Life of Nathan Clifford 

eignties before even the Union was formed, and they con- 
tinued to be such from the date of the Declaration of 
Independence until the Articles of Confederation were 
ratified; and even then it was provided in the second ar- 
ticle that 'each State retains its sovereignty, freedom and 
independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right 
which is not by the Confederation expressly delegated to 
the United States in Congress assembled.' .... 

' ' Such powers as the Confederation possessed operated 
only upon the States as corporations, and not upon the 
people of the States; and the system of government as 
adopted made no provision for an executive of any kind, 
nor for a judiciary except in certain matters of prize, and 
for the trial of piracies and felonies committed upon the 
high seas. . . . Difficulties and defects of the kind, too 
numerous to mention in this investigation, led to the forma- 
tion and adoption of the present Constitution, which, as 
recited in the preamble, was ordained and established, 'in 
order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, in- 
sure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, 
promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of 
liberty to ourselves and our posterity.' Perpetuity was as 
much the object which the framers of the instrument had 
in view as any other of the high purposes therein described, 
as their declared aim was to secure the blessings of liberty 
to their posterity as well as to themselves and their con- 
stituents. They did not attempt to amend the old system, 
but they ordained a new one, vesting the powers of govern- 
ment in three separate departments, to wit, the legislative, 
the executive, and the judicial, and providing that the 
powers granted should operate not merely upon the States 
as under the Confederation, but upon the whole people, 
and investing the new government with most ample 
powers to enforce the prohibitions of the Constitution, and 
the laws passed by Congress in pursuance of its provisions. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 289 

"Evidence to show that the union of the States as 
perfected in the Constitution was intended to be indis- 
soluble, pervades every part of the instrument, as is 
sufficiently shown from the extent of the powers granted, 
and the amplitude of the means provided to carry them 
into effect. Congress may legislate for all the purposes 
specified in the express grants conferring such powers, and 
may pass all laws necessary and proper 'for carrying into 
execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers 
vested by the Constitution in the government of the 
United States, or in any department or officer thereof.' 

"Provision is also made that the President shall take 
care that the laws be faithfully executed and that the 
judicial powers shall extend to all cases in law and equity, 
arising under the Constitution, the laws of the United 
States, and treaties made or which shall be made under 
their authority. The intended permanency' of the new 
government is portrayed in every one of these provisions, 
to which it would seem that nothing need be added to 
show that the doctrine of secession is a wicked heresy; 
but, if more be needed, it is found in Sec. 4 of the fourth 
article of the Constitution, which provides that the 
United States shall guarantee to every state in this Union 
a republican form of government, and shall protect each 
of them against invasion and . . . domestic violence. 
. . . They [these views] may be assumed as truths which 
cannot be contested; but it does not follow that the 
government ordained by the Constitution is a government 
of unlimited powers. On the contrary, the settled con- 
struction is that the government of the United States 
is one of limited powers, which is shown to a demonstra- 
tion by the tenth amendment, which reserves to the States 
respectively or to the people all power not delegated 

» Compare Chase's phrase in Texas vs. White: "an indestructible Union 
composed of indestructible States." 



290 Life of Nathan Clifford 

to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited 
by it to the States. " 

On constitutional questions Judge Clifford was of the 
Taney type, rather than of the Marshall stamp of jurists. 
That is to say, he believed in an interpretation of the 
Constitution which was confined to the exact meaning of 
the words used. He did not attempt to read into the 
instrument any of those implied powers, the exposition 
of which has made the name of John Marshall famous. 
To one who believes that in the end all things are decided 
for the best, it is easy to hold the opinion that it was 
necessary in the early years of the republic to have John 
Marshall Chief Justice of the United States, but that it 
was equally important that he should have been suc- 
ceeded by Roger B. Taney. Broad construction was 
certainly an important element in building the strength 
of the nation, yet had it been extended to an unlimited 
degree, and had it not been checked by the decisions of 
the later school of jurists, the existence of a union of 
states might have been snuffed out, and given place to a 
collection of administrative units as in the present French 
Republic. 

The New York Tribune said of Judge CHfford in this 
connection : 

"It was in the causes occasionally occurring in which 
political issues are indirectly involved that his conservative 
spirit shone most clearly. He was appointed from the Demo- 
cratic side, toward the culmination of Democratic policy before 
the war, and naturally felt little sympathy with the rise 
and growth of the enlarged views of national authority and 
Federal power which soon afterward obtained. Not only in 
the judgment against General Neal Dow, in the dissenting 
opinion against the legal-tender acts, and in the deliberations 
of the Electoral Commission, mentioned lately in the Tribune 



Justice of the Supreme Court 291 

but in many other instances he made whatever stand he could 
against the movement of his times yet always with learning 
and integrity. Thus in the Circuit Court he readily held that 
Confederate privateers were not pirates, and that the income 
tax could not be collected from a State Judge. Early in the 
war when a Massachusetts man under military arrest by order 
of Secretary Cameron asked him for a writ of habeas corpus, 
which he granted, but which the miHtary authorities refused 
to obey, he calmly regretted that officers of the United States 
should obstruct the writ, and that the court had not the 
command of the physical force needful to effect service and 
ordered the writ placed on file, to be served whenever 
practicable ! 

We do not hesitate to pronounce Judge Clifford a jurist of 
eminent ability and usefulness. His ability was that in which 
learning, industry, integrity and professional enthusiasm are 
the chief components. In usefulness he belongs in the class 
of which Chief Justice Taney was a type. That insight, that 
unconscious sympathy with human progress, which in rare 
instances enables a judge, while scrupulously administering 
existing law, to expand, advance and develop it com- 
mensurately with human needs, he did not much display. We 
do not place him in the class of which Marshall, and perhaps 
Story, on the Federal bench, Mansfield in England, Kent and 
perhaps Oakley in this state, are distinguished representatives. 
But his name will long hold a respected place in American 
judicial history." 

On the other hand, regarding the growth of the other 
branches of law, his breadth of vision and willingness to 
expand and develop established principles to meet new 
situations was very marked. The law of patents, of ad- 
miralty (of which he came to the bench entirely ignorant 
and in which he was later recognized as an authority), 
and of bills and notes, as it stands to-day in America, 
owes much to his progressive interpretation. He sym- 



292 Life of Nathan Clifford 

pathized with the growing demand for a more liberal 
recognition of intellectual property and his decisions in 
the former field, instead of being marked by a conservative 
care to keep within the letter of the law and the track of 
precedent, show a disposition to advance in accordance 
with the requirements of human progress. 

As to the literary style of his opinions, they are charac- 
teristic of his life. They represent an enormous amount 
of study, but are not illuminated by any flashes of bril- 
liancy. They move on slowly, sometimes almost ponder- 
ously, but always irresistibly, from premise to conclusion. 
No point is omitted which can in any way bear on the 
question at issue, and the end is reached by a process which 
leaves no loopholes for argument. An amusing feature of 
his opinions, particularly the earlier ones, is the omission 
of the definite article. There is a tradition that one of his 
associates in the conference room suggested the following 
resolution: "That Brother Clifford be encouraged to use 
the definite article in moderation .'' 

No account of his judgeship would be complete without 
a mention of the great mental labors performed by him 
while on the bench. At the time of his appointment most 
of the judges of the Supreme Court were old men. In 
many cases they were enfeebled by illness and unable 
properly to perform their just share of the work. The 
docket was crowded and there was a great accumulation 
of untried entries. 

To this situation Judge Clifford came, a man of fifty- 
four years of age, in perfect health, and with an almost 
unlimited capacity for hard work. His labor was made 
more difficult from the fact of his comparative inexperi- 
ence in the work of a Federal Judge. His practice had been 
confined to the state courts and had been of a nature far 
different from the kind of problems which were to be 
presented to him in his new position. 



Justice of the Supreme Court 293 

Largely through Judge Clifford's assiduity, business was 
reduced after months of effort to the dimensions of ciurrent 
matters. At this time it was customary for the Supreme 
Court Judge to sit during his so-called "vacations" in the 
Federal Court of the circuit from which he was appointed, 
there being no Circuit Judges. In Judge Clifford's case 
such contemplated respite was a nullity. His labors were 
as arduous here as in Washington, and the same situation 
confronted him. The District Judges were old and in 
many cases partially incapacitated, and the new in- 
cumbent found the dockets so crowded that it took sev- 
eral years to reduce the congestion. 

Another fact should be emphasized as to Judge Clifford's 
administration of his office. Every lawyer knows that a 
petulant, impatient or arbitrary manner upon the bench 
can easily render it impossible for counsel properly to 
discharge their duty to their client or to do justice to them- 
selves. A correct judicial behavior is thus more than a 
mere matter of etiquette. 

Judge Clifford's attitude was always characterized by a 
uniform courtesy. He was gentle and considerate, at the 
same time dignified and self-respecting. His kindness to 
all lawyers, especially the younger men, was very marked. 
While he often spoke from the bench it was to elucidate 
and not to cloud, and very often, by an amusing story, to 
bring a bit of brightness into the dryness of a long and hard- 
fought legal battle. 

The greatest proof of the value of a man's life and work 
lies in the reputation of him which survives a generation 
or more after his death, when the heat of daily excitement 
has given place to the cool of calm contemplation. The 
memory of Judge Clifford is still fresh. His opinions are 
held by all courts in the highest esteem. Of the men who 
were best acquainted with him during his judicial career, 
nearly all are now dead, but to the end of their lives they 



294 Life of Nathan Clifford 

spoke of him always with unqualified admiration of his 
character, his services to his country, his dignified, cour- 
teous bearing, and great learning in the law. To the 
younger lawyers of his day, now old, by whom he was 
gazed at from afar, his life was an inspiration and a model 
which has been handed down as a tradition to their 
children. 



CHAPTER XI 
Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 

The history of the case of Bradish Johnson against 
Neal Dow is illustrative of the intense party feeling which 
obtained between the Democrats and the Republicans 
during the period immediately following the close of the 
Civil War, and is particularly characteristic of the cam- 
paign between Hayes & Tilden which resulted in the 
appointment of the Electoral Commission over which Judge 
Clifford presided. For this reason the matter is here 
given a prominence out of all proportion to its actual 
importance. It furnishes an interesting example of how 
really great men are swayed, in times of stress, to a sincere 
belief in the correctness of an opinion which in calmer 
moments would not have received their sanction. 

It will be remembered that the Republican Party had 
been in power uninterruptedly since the election of Lin- 
coln. The exposures and scandals of the Grant adminis- 
tration had led to a strong defection from the Republican 
ranks, and the Democrats had, for the first time since the 
war, a fair chance of electing their candidate. Both sides 
were straining every nerve to accomplish their purposes; 
the former to bolster up the weak fabric of their record for 
the past eight years, and at the same time to convince the 
public that a victory of their opponents meant a destruc- 
tion of the principles which had saved the Union, the 
latter to show up all the wrongdoings of their rivals while 
endeavoring to touch as lightly as possible upon any 

295 



296 Life of Nathan Clifford 

unfavorable act of their own previous to and during the 
War of the RebelHon. 

While the City of New Orleans was under the control of 
the Federal troops, after its capture by them from the 
forces of the Confederacy, clashes between the inhabitants 
and the army of occupation were very frequent. The 
natural antagonism between conqueror and conquered 
was accentuated by special circumstances, into the details 
of which it is not now necessary to enter. Whether the 
northern military officers were in fact as careful as they 
should have been to guard against the happening of events 
which would tend to increase this hostility is a question 
about which many hard words have been said and written. 
Those who look back upon these times with calmer 
thoughts and unprejudiced judgment will be tempted to 
turn aside from such controversies with the conviction 
that human nature has not changed in the course of the 
last sixty years. 

At the time of the occupation, Bradish Johnson was the 
owner of an estate, on the Mississippi River, in the State 
of Louisiana, about 43 miles from New Orleans. On 
January 29, 1863, Johnson brought a suit in the 6th Dis- 
trict Court of the City & Parish of New Orleans against 
Brigadier General Neal Dow of the 13th Maine Regiment, 
alleging that on the sixth day of September, 1862, during 
the temporary absence of the Plaintiff, Captain Snell, 
acting under the "verbal and secret" orders of General 
Dow, took from Johnson's plantation twenty-five hogs- 
heads of sugar, plundered the dwelling-house thereon and 
took one d) silver pitcher, one-half (>^) dozen silver 
knives, one-half i}4) dozen silver spoons, one (i) fish 
knife, one-half (K) dozen silver teaspoons and other 
articles. The petitioner described himself in his writ as 
one who was and always had been a loyal citizen, residing 
in the State of New York. 



Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 297 

The record of the case shows that personal notice of the 
commencement of the suit was given to General Dow. 
No appearance or defence was made by him, and after 
hearing, judgment was entered against him for $1454.81. 
This execution was never paid by the Defendant and after 
the close of the war and General Dow had retired from the 
service, Johnson commenced an action against him in the 
United States Circuit Court in Maine upon the judgment 
rendered by the Louisiana Tribunal. 

Mr. Dow retained as his attorneys. Honorable Edward 
Fox and Honorable Josiah H. Drummond. Before the 
case came on for hearing Mr. Fox was appointed Judge of 
the United States District Court of Maine and retired in 
favor of Honorable Woodbury Davis. Honorable Bion 
Bradbury and John Rand, Esquire, acted as counsel for 
Mr. Johnson, and Honorable Nathan Webb, as the United 
States District Attorney, was called upon to represent the 
interest of the United States Government. Fox, Drum- 
mond, Rand, Davis and Webb were Republicans; Brad- 
bury was a Democrat. 

Devoid of technicalities, the question raised was whether 
the judgment sued upon was valid, this in turn depending 
upon the jurisdiction of the courts of Louisiana over an 
officer in the army of occupation while the Civil War was 
still in progress. 

Judge Clifford felt that General Dow was amenable to 
the Louisiana Tribunal. It was quite natural that such 
should be his opinion. The Democratic view of the status 
of the seceding states during the rebellion would have led 
him toward this conclusion. Whether or not they were 
ever outside the Union, at all events, when occupied by 
northern troops, they were again restored to a full par- 
ticipation in their former rights and privileges. There- 
fore, the position of the Federal garrisons in Louisiana was 
not that of an invading army on foreign soil. The officers 



298 Life of Nathan Clifford 

were in exactly the same relation toward the inhabitants 
of the territory as is to-day the commander of a military 
post near a New England coast city as regards citizens of 
the surrounding country. The States' Rights views had 
many ramifications and their feelers extended a long way. 
Judge Clifford's dissent in the vSupreme Court, when the 
case was heard on appeal, makes no mention of this doc- 
trine in specific terms, and yet who can doubt that it was 
at the back of his brain when he was writing in all sincerity 
his decision in favor of the validity of the Louisiana 
judgment. 

In spite of the strong feeling which Judge Clifford enter- 
tained in this matter, he was careful not to allow it to inter- 
fere in any way with his duties as a Judge. He regarded 
this question as one of the very greatest importance and 
probably knew that many of the Judges would not agree 
with his ideas. Therefore, in order to give both parties 
to the cause the benefit of the decision of the highest court 
in the country, Judge Clifford desired that the case should 
be taken to the Supreme Court of the United States. 
This could be done only upon a certificate of division of 
opinion between the Judges of the Circuit Court. The 
Circuit Court would consist commonly of Judge Clifford 
and Judge Fox, the United States District Judge, or Judge 
Clifford and Judge Shepley, the United States Circuit 
Judge. Judge Shepley considered himself unable to sit 
for the reason that at the date of the commencement of the 
proceedings in Louisiana, he had been the military gover- 
nor. Judge Fox was disqualified as he had been originally 
of counsel for the defendant in the Circuit Court in Maine. 

While Judge Clifford would have had the right under 
these circumstances to decide the issue by himself accord- 
ing to his belief, he still was unwilling to do so, as such a 
course would have deprived the Plaintiff of his right of 
appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States. There- 



Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 299 

fore, after hearing the case alone, he asked Judge Daniel 
Clark, District Judge of New Hampshire, to sit with him. 
This necessitated a re-argument, whereupon the two judges, 
pro forma, took opposite sides. 

It is doubtful whether the litigation would have caused a 
great deal of commotion had it not been for the fact that 
James G. Blaine, in a speech a few days later at Warren, 
Ohio, used the decision for the purpose of attacking the 
Democratic candidate for President at the coming election, 
Mr. Tilden. In the Portland Daily Press of September 
30, 1876, occurs the following item: 

Mr. Blaine made his first speech in Ohio at Warren last 
Saturday. In the course of his argument he delivered the 
following commentary on a recent decision of the United States 
Circuit Court: 

"On Thursday of last week a decision was rendered in the 
City of Portland, State of Maine, in the United States Circuit 
Court, Judge Nathan Clifford presiding, with Daniel Clark, 
District Judge of New Hampshire sitting with him — and I 
want the attention of the lawyers — confirming the judgment 
obtained against Neal Dow of the 13th Maine Regiment in 
Louisiana, giving judgment to a rebel against Dow personally 
for sugar seized on his plantation by a foraging party from 
Dow's regiment. They were out foraging and seized some sugar 
and the man sued for it, and Dow said, 'If you are a loyal 
man we will give you a receipt, and you will easily get your pay 
for it!' The sugar was used, a large part of it, in hospitals. 
Dow said 'If you will show me your loyalty, I will give you a 
receipt !' and the rebel declined to do it, and got judgment, in a 
Louisiana Court. The United States Circuit Court at Port- 
land confirmed the judgment, and ordered execution to issue 
for seventeen hundred and fifty dollars ($1750.00) 

" That being so, I say, gentlemen, will it not enable the man 
that owned the field at Appomattox to collect the ground rent 
from Grant for the occupancy of it and destruction of the 
fences and crops. There has never been so menacing a cloud 



300 Life of Nathan Clifford 

as this hanging over a free people. More than that, this 
decision was warmly dissented from by Judge Clark of New 
Hampshire. He was brought up in the true faith, but the 
Supreme Court overruled him in the person of Clifford. 
Clifford is an ingrain, hungry democrat, double-dyed and 
twisted, dyed in the wool, and coarse wool at that. 

"Ex Governor Wood of Vermont, a man of as pure character 
as lives, writes over his name, 'I have known Mr. Tilden for 
twenty (20) years. I have debated this question with him 
personally, and I know that he holds the opinion that the war 
was unconstitutional. I heard him declare, in conversation 
with myself since the close of the war, that every man that 
marched in the United States Army that marched across 
southern soil was a trespasser, and liable to suit for damages in 
an action for trespass !' I think that Clifford read that opinion 
of Tilden 's the day before he made his decision in regard to 
Dow's sugar. And the Democrats tell you the Constitution 
.forbids the payment of these claims!" 

This attack made a great stir at the time. The speech 
was copied in the New York and other important news- 
papers. The Portland Daily Argus on October 2, 1876, 
answered the attack on Judge Clifford by two articles 
headed : 

"Blaine's Attack on Judge Clifford" 
"Blaine Falsifies the Record" 

The Portland Advertiser, in spite of its poHtical affilia- 
tion, printed an editorial in rather grudging defence of the 
Judge and weak condemnation of Mr. Blaine. 

Judge Clifford's family and friends w^ere very quick to 
defend him against what seemed to them to be a reflection 
upon his honor and his integrity. Three sons of Judge 
Clifford, Charles E. Clifford, WilHam Henry Clifford and 
George F. Clifford, all of whom were lawyers, drew up a 
summary of the chief points in the case and sent it to the 



Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 301 

different attorneys on both sides with the explanation that 
inasmuch as they were not of counsel and could not have 
full and accurate knowledge of the facts, they desired to 
know whether the statement sent was correct. All repHed 
in the affirmative. John Rand wrote : " [I] think it my duty 
to add, that while Judge Clifford had the power to make 
his own opinion final and conclusive, his extreme anxiety 
that no injustice should be done, prompted him to call in 
Judge Clark in order that so important a question might 
be re-examined at Washington." 

Mr. Bradbury answered, "Judge Clifford, if he had been 
guided by the spirit most wrongfully imputed to him by 
Mr. Blaine, could have decided the cause without calling 
upon Judge Clark to sit with him ; but, deeming the ques- 
tions involved delicate and important, he preferred that 
they should be determined by out- highest judicial ttibunal, 
and adopted the only course by which that object could 
be obtained." 

Josiah H. Drummond said, "I have examined the fore- 
going and find that it contains a correct statement of the 
facts. The questions presented to the court were whether 
the Louisiana Court had jurisdiction of the defendant and 
of the subject matter of the suit and could render a valid 
judgment therein." 

Judge Fox replied, "After the cause was submitted to 
Judge Clifford, he very frequently stated to me that he 
found it was attended with serious difficulties, and he was 
anxious it should be taken to the Supreme Court, so that 
his ruHng would not be final and conclusive." 

It may be considered that undue importance has been 
given to this case in the foregoing account. It is necessary, 
however, to recall the state of the public mind during the 
Hayes-Tilden campaign in order to appreciate how much 
weight this episode had at the time of its occurrence. As 
a proof of this fact, the following extracts from eulogies 



302 Life of Nathan Clifford 

pronounced five years later at the funeral of Judge Clifford 
are here quoted: "He has never been accused of acting 
from partisan bias, except by Mr. Blaine, whose attack 
was false and groundless as it was base, and was so proved 
at once by RepubHcans as well as Democrats, " and 

"Once an envenomed shaft, shot from the bow of a 
political partisan was aimed at him, but it fell harmless at 
his feet. The bow which sped the arrow recoiled upon the 
reckless archer. The prompt and signal pubHc rebuke 
which followed the unjust assault, demonstrated how 
firmly set in the public mind was his character as an honest 
and impartial Judge." 

From the vantage point of sixty years after the event, 
it is easy to say that Judge Clifford's view was wrong. 
It was in fact overruled by the Supreme Court of the 
United States, Mr. Justice Field delivering the opinion of 
the court, Judge Clifford at the time writing a dissent 
concurred in by Mr. Justice Miller. 

The Court states, in effect, that the situation in the State 
of Louisiana at the time of the occupation of the territory 
by the Federal troops was that of a captured province in 
the possession of an invading army. In looking back 
through the perspective of history, the decision seems 
absolutely right. Whatever technicalities may have 
interested the legal minds of that day as to whether one of 
the States of the Union could be in the position of a con- 
quered territory, the fact remains that, as a practical 
question, Louisiana was, owing to peculiar conditions of 
the occupation, nearer to that status than any other. As 
the court points out, if, under those circumstances, a 
general of the Federal army had been subject to be called 
upon by the civil magistrates of Louisiana to answer to 
every suit brought against him, it certainly would have 
seriously interfered with the performance of his duties, 
and would have rendered useless the authority of the 



Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 303 

army which he commanded. It is equally true that what- 
ever idea may be held as to the correctness of the decision, 
but one belief can be entertained as to the charge of Mr. 
Blaine, and of the perfect fairness of Judge Clifford. 

As a sequel to the case, and as an example of the high 
regard and consideration in which Judge Clifford was held 
by those with whom he came in contact during his judicial 
life, the following letter and enclosure will serve as the 
best evidence. 

Portland, Me. 
July 31, 1877. 
Hon. Nathan Clifford, 
Justice of United States, 
Supreme Court, 
Portland, Maine. 

My Dear Judge : 

After the announcement of the decision of the Case Bradish 
Johnson vs. Neal Dow, by the United States Circuit Court in 
this District, I was pained to see in the public papers of the 
day, a reference to that decision imputed to Hon. J. G. Blaine, 
in a political speech. 

My high respect for yourself individually and in your 
judicial office, and my sense of official and professional obli- 
gation seemed alike to demand that I should at once correct 
as far as in my power a mistaken representation of that case, 
no less injurious to him who circulated it, than unjust to 
yourself. 

Accordingly I addressed to Mr. Blaine by mail, the letter of 
which I enclose a substantial copy. — I say a substantial 
copy, because I only retained the first draft, and quite likely, 
made verbal changes, when transcribing it to forward to Mr. 
B.— 

Of course I have no knowledge whether that letter was ever 
received. 

The temporary notoriety given to the matter has now sub- 
sided. But looking over my papers to-day, I am reminded 



304 Life of Nathan Clifford 

of it, and take the liberty of recurring to the affair, to assure 
you in this way how little sympathy I had with the attack on 
you. 

Permit me to add, what you well know, that this letter was 
written without your knowledge, and without any suggestion 
from you, or any one in your behalf, but solely under the 
prompting of the motives I have stated, 
I am Sir 

Very Respectfully 

Your Obedient Servant, 
Nathan Webb 



Copy 

Portland, Me. 
Sept. 30, 1876. 

My Dear Blaine : 

Be careful about citing in your speeches for the sake of a 
good point, the case of Bradish Johnson v. Neal Dow, recently 
passed upon by the Circuit Court in this city, for a true state- 
ment of the facts in that case may recoil to your own dis- 
advantage, as well as to the injury of the cause you have at 
heart. 

I presume, in the use you make of that decision of the Court 
you are acting under a wrong impression & would not know- 
ingly hazard anything by an argument that can be turned 
against you with effect. And so I am prompted, after read- 
ing in the morning paper a report of your reference to this 
matter, to give you the facts, as they came to my knowledge 
from my participation in the defence ; acting as I do to protect 
the interests of the United States in the case. 

In the first place Bradish Johnson the Ptff. claims to be, and 
always to have been a loyal citizen, residing in the State of 
New York, and owning a plantation in Louisiana. His 
original suit in the District Court of New Orleans was com- 
menced January 29, 1863, while the city was in possession of 
the United States troops, and charges that besides twenty- 
four hogsheads of sugar taken by the command of Capt. W. B. 
Snell, "plundered the dwelling house of said plantation, which 



Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 305 

house and contents was likewise the private property of the 
Petitioner and took therefrom one silver pitcher, a half dozen 
silver knives, a half dozen silver spoons, one fish knife, a half 
dozen silver teaspoons & other articles which cannot be 
specified at the present time, but which petitioner reserves to 
himself the right to claim in these proceedings." 

" That these illegal, wanton and oppressive and unjustifiable 
acts and doings of Capt Snell & the officers and soldiers under 
his command were perpetrated under a verbal and secret order 
of Neal Dow, who was then and there a Brig. Genl. in com- 
mand, &c." — "and who, by his secret orders, unauthorized by 
his superiors, or by any provisions of law martial, or by any 
requirement of necessity growing out of the state of war 
wantonly abused his power, and inflicted upon the petitioner 
the wrongs complained of, &c &c." 

The record shows that personal notice of the commencement 
of the suit was given to Mr. Dow. No appearance in defence 
was made by him. It is rumored, with what truth I do not 
know, and cannot even guess, that Genl. Dow communicated 
the fact of this proceeding against him to Genl. Banks, com- 
manding the Department at the time, and was assured that 
suitable orders to stay the proceeding of the Court should be 
issued, as the Courts at that time were to an extent running 
under the authority of the military powers. However that 
may be, no orders appear to have been promulgated, and the 
action was defaulted, and judgment rendered on the default 
for something over $1400. against Mr. Dow. Of course Dow 
did not pay, and after his return to Maine, at the conclusion of 
his service in the army, Johnson commenced an action against 
him, in the Circuit Court in Maine, upon that judgement. 

Mr. Dow retained as his attorneys, the late Judge Woodbury 
Davis, and Hon. Josiah H. Drummond, or rather he retained 
originally Judge Fox, now of the United States District Court, 
who on being appointed Judge turned the case over to the 
gentlemen first named. They first pleaded that there was no 
such record of judgement of the Louisiana Court ; and by leave 
of Court also filed three special pleas, setting out the condition 
of public affairs at New Orleans at the time of alleged tres- 



3o6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

passes ; the official character of Mr. Dow &c &c, to show that 
the Court had no jurisdiction and the judgement was void. 

Johnson's attorneys, Bion Bradbury and John Rand Esqrs. 
repHed that there was such a record, and that the Court did 
have jurisdiction. In the meantime Judge Davis had died, and 
I was called on as U. S. Atty. to represent the Government & 
to protect its interests as liable to indemnify Mr. Dow. Mr. 
Drummond and I filed a demurrer to this replication of Plaintiffs, 
and thus raised questions of pure law which were argued before 
Judge Clifford more than two years ago. 

It became known before long, that Judge Clifford found the 
questions presented very difficult, and that he deemed them of 
too much public importance to be determined by any single 
judge, and that he desired to have them submitted to the 
consideration of the full Supreme Court of the United States. 
He invited the co-operation of Judge Fox, who declined on the 
ground, that having been of counsel, he was disqualified by law 
to sit; Judge Shepley's aid was sought, and he considered him- 
self disqualified by the fact that at the date of the commence- 
ment of proceedings in Louisiana, he was military Governor 
of that State, and had issued certain orders for re-opening the 
Courts. 

Judge Clifford was not only troubled by the difficulty of the 
legal questions presented, and unable to come to a conclusion 
upon which he was fully satisfied, but he was also unwilling 
to pass upon and settle finally by his single judgement these 
important matters. If he passed upon them alone his deter- 
mination could not be revised, but would be final. 

To overcome these difficulties he called in Judge Clark, to 
the end that by a division of opinion, a door might be opened 
for getting the subject before the Supreme Court. So a few 
weeks ago Judge Clark came down, the case was re-argued, and 
pro forma, the two Judges took opposite sides ; it did not matter 
which side either took. But as by the law as it now stands, 
the opinion of Judge Clifford must for the time being stand 
as the opinion of the Court, upon which judgement must 
be entered, he took that side which in any event would obviate 
necessity for further trial in the Circuit Court, for if over- 



Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow 307 

ruled that would end the case, and if sustained the amount of 
judgement would be already ascertained. A certificate of 
division was signed by the two judges as part of the record. 
And the next day I took steps to obtain a writ of error to the 
Supreme Court, which will be entered at the approaching 
October term of that Court. 

Now I do not doubt that when you understand the real state 
of things, as I have here given them, you will agree with me, 
that as a matter of policy simply, the use you have made of 
this case is unlucky. And I believe you will regret having 
through misapprehension done injustice to Judge Clifford, who 
is one of the most candid and impartial of Judges, founding 
his hope of fame in the future, on a sincere and earnest purpose 
by all the effort he is capable of, to win the praise of an upright 
and learned and faithful Judge. 

I have felt it my duty to you, to the cause for which you are 
laboring, and with which I most heartily sympathize, and to 
the Court, to write this long letter to you. 

Very Truly yours 
Nathan Webb 



CHAPTER XII 
The Electoral Commission 

The record of the Electoral Commission' is a page of 
History of which every American may be ashamed and 
proud at the same time. That a great crisis was passed 
through without revolution, that riot and bloodshed were 
avoided by the good sense and patriotic endeavors of 
members of Congress, and that the result of those efforts 
was concurred in by the country, are facts in which any 
citizen may take comfort. On the other hand, when one 
studies in detail the votes cast upon each of the points 
presented for decision, he cannot but be disgusted that, of 
the 15 men on the tribunal, not one could rise above a 
partisan bias in a matter of such import. 

A brief consideration of the events leading up to the 
selection of the court is necessary if one is to understand 
Judge Clifford's part therein. On November 8, 1876, 
nearly every morning newspaper in the country announced 
the election of Mr. Tilden as President of the United 
States. On the evening of the same day the Republican 
National Committee issued a bulletin giving Hayes 185 
and Tilden 184 votes in the electoral college. It soon 
appeared that the resul t depended upon the counts in the 
States of South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana and Oregon. 
It was also evident that South Carolina and Oregon had 
gone for Hayes and that on the face of the returns Tilden 
had carried Florida and Louisiana. 

' This account follows the narrative in Rhodes, History of the United States 
from the Compromise of i8so, vol. vii., pages 227-285. 
308 



The Electoral Commission 309 

Under the carpet bag regime which had been instituted 
by the RepubHcan Party in the Southern States, there were 
so-called canvassing boards in Florida and Louisiana which 
had the power to throw out votes which they considered 
had been obtained through intimidation or fraud. These 
bodies were in the control of the Republicans. In Florida 
the returns showed on their face a majority of 90 for 
Tilden, which on account of alleged irregularities was 
converted into one of 925 for Hayes by the local officials. 
On November loth President Grant invited several 
prominent Republicans to go to New Orleans, to superin- 
tend the recounting of the Louisiana votes and Abram 
S. Hewitt, Chairman of the National Democratic Com- 
mittee, issued a like call to members of his party. Twenty- 
five Republicans and twenty-three Democrats responded. 
These men were known as the "visiting statesmen." 

The decision in the State of Louisiana lay with a board 
composed of James Madison Wells, Thomas C. Anderson 
and two colored men named Casanave and Kenner. All 
were Republicans. Wells, its President, was surveyor of 
the Port of New Orleans. Of him Sheridan had written 
that he was "a political trickster and a dishonest man." 
Kenner had been indicted for larceny. Anderson was said 
to be corrupt and Casanave has been called "an ignorant 
nonentity." ^ Yet so warped were the feelings at this time 
that John Sherman, one of the visiting statesmen, wrote 
to Hayes: "I . . . have formed a high opinion of Gov- 
ernor Wells and Colonel Anderson. They are firm, judi- 
cious and, as far as I can judge thoroughly honest and 
conscientious." There seems to be little doubt that Wells 
offered the vote of Louisiana to Tilden for $200,000. 

It is perhaps hazarding too much to say that if the visit- 
ing statesmen had stayed at home Louisiana would have 
been returned as a Tilden state, but it was easy to foretell 

' Rhodes, vol. vii., page 231. 



3IO Life of Nathan Clifford 

the result of this journey, upon the action of such men as 
Wells and Anderson. They felt that their political future 
depended on a decision in keeping with the wishes of the 
representatives of their party who had come all the way 
from Washington to supervise their conduct. They lived 
up to what they believed was expected of them by convert- 
ing the apparent Tilden majority into one for Hayes. 

The provisions of the Constitution of the United States 
regarding the counting of the electoral votes were very 
vague, being that "the President of the Senate shall, in 
the presence of the Senate and the House of Representa- 
tives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be 
counted." Did this mean that the President of the 
Senate alone should make the decision in case there were 
two conflicting returns from the same state, or was its 
significance that the members of the two Houses of Con- 
gress should have the power to accept or reject? In 1865, 
the 22nd joint rule had been adopted, to the effect that 
"no vote objected to shall be counted except by the con- 
current votes of the two Houses." By agreement, the 
same method had been employed in 1869 and 1873. It 
was urged by some that this course must still be followed. 
The Senate was Republican by 17 and the House Demo- 
cratic by 74. 

If the President of the Senate alone should be held to be 
the arbiter, it was certain that the dispute would be de- 
cided in favor of Hayes, as the office was held by Thomas 
W. Ferry, an intransigent Republican, who could be 
depended upon to aid his party in this period of stress. 
However, should the 22nd joint rule be held to be in force, 
the result would be favorable to the Democrats, as the 
House would reject the Florida and Louisiana returns, thus 
giving Tilden a majority, while if the Senate should at- 
tempt to throw out votes from other states, neither party 
would have the requisite number and there would be no 



The Electoral Commission 311 

election. The constitution was clear as to what was to 
be done in such a contingency. It provided that the 
House should proceed to ballot for President, the votes 
being taken by states. This would insure the election of 
Mr. Tilden. 

It is difficult to understand how anyone honestly could 
have advocated the view that the President of the Senate 
alone had the right to decide what votes should be counted. 
There was no precedent for such a course and it is doubtful 
if the idea had ever before been seriously urged. As a 
joint rule can have no force beyond the life of the Congress 
which adopts it, and as there was no express acceptance 
of the 22nd by the body then elected, it is equally hard to 
comprehend the sincerity of those who contended that it 
was still binding. One's humor is aroused in noting how 
little strength the most cherished beliefs of parties have if 
an application of them in any specific instance will work 
a hardship to their former advocates. ^ The Democrats, 
heretofore, had stood for the supremacy of the local as 
against the Central Government in all except purely na- 
tional affairs, while the Republican theory had been one 
of magnifying, as much as possible, the Federal power at 
the expense of that of the different commonwealths. Yet 
we find the former insisting that Congress had the right 
"to go behind the returns" from the different states and 
to declare whether those results were correct, while the 
latter party insisted that such a proceeding would be an 
unjust interference with sovereign rights. 

As far as one is able, in looking back, to visualize the 
situation with regard to the question as to who really was 
elected President, the facts present themselves about as 
follows : by the 1 5th amendment large numbers of negroes 
had been given the ballot with the result of an increase of 
35 electoral votes for the south. Had these newly en- 

' See Editorial, New York Tribune, Feb. 9, 1877. 



312 Life of Nathan Clifford 

f ranchised persons been allowed to exercise their privilege, 
the disputed states probably would have gone for Hayes. 
On the other hand there is little doubt that, on the face of 
the returns, and according to the votes actually cast, the 
Democrats had won the election. Also if the truth were 
told, it is probable that the action of the returning boards of 
Louisiana and Florida in throwing out enough Democratic 
votes to turn a small majority into a minority was with- 
out legal right. 

The situation was, to say the least, acute. There was 
no possibility of an agreement in Congress. Each party 
threw the cry of fraud in the teeth of the other. There 
were no constitutional or statutory provisions which would 
meet the present exigency. Civil war was again predicted. 
A vast host of men were out of employment. Some Demo- 
crats went as far as to suggest that Mr. Tilden should 
place himself at the head of an army and march on Wash- 
ington. President Grant was quietly concentrating a 
strong force in Washington and strengthening its defences. 
March 4th, the end of the President's term, was drawing 
near. 

How much danger of actual conflict existed, must be 
left to conjecture. Had the whole matter been allowed 
to drift, Hayes would have been announced by Ferry as 
elected. The army would have been at the disposal of 
the Republicans as Grant was President. Any beUicose 
steps must then have been taken by the Democrats who 
relied on the South for support. The Southerners knew 
what war meant, and it is doubtful whether their assist- 
ance would have gone to the extent of giving aid in such a 
cause. They had been through one such experience and 
did not propose to burden themselves with another. 

During the weeks of suspense, the personalities of the 
different candidates played an important part in forming 
public opinion as to the merits of the question at issue. 



The Electoral Commission 313 

Mr. Rhodes, in speaking of Mr. Tilden, uses the following 
language : 

"Tilden did not rise to the emergency. In quiet times he 
would have made a good President, but he was entirely lacking 
in both the physical and moral courage needed in a leader dur- 
ing the turbulent times which succeeded election day." 

He was greatly injured in the public eye by the attitude 
of some of his so-called friends. More recent judgment 
has entirely exonerated him from any connection with the 
undoubted efforts at bribery which were made in his name. 
Yet, at the time, no rumor was too base to be given cre- 
dence, and the candidate undoubtedly suffered in public 
esteem in consequence. A different attitude on his part 
would have made a more favorable impression on the 
country. Tilden vacillated when he should have been 
firm. He wavered when he ought to have presented a bold 
front, seemingly confident in the virtue of his claim. 
Hayes, on the other hand, was dignified and appeared well. 
His utterances were manly and frank and won respect, 
while those of his rival created distrust. 

On December 14, 1876, the judiciary committee of the 
House reported favorably on a motion for a committee on 
the whole question. The Senate adopted a similar resolu- 
tion. Up to January 10, 1877, no agreement had been 
arrived at by the members. Each side was unable to do 
more than urge its own arguments. On this date, how- 
ever, came the first suggestion as to a commission. Mr. 
Rhodes attributes the change in attitude to the "genial 
influence of the food" which the chairman had ordered. 
At all events it is a pleasant thought that a group of 
partisans, sitting round a table, confronted with the solu- 
tion of one of the greatest problems ever presented to 
American statesmen, unyielding each to the other in the 
least degree till voices were raised and passions kindled, 



314 Life of Nathan Clifford 

should be brought back to a proper realization of their 
duty by the "genial influence of the food" which the tact 
and foresight of one of their number had provided. Surely 
no entertainment ever produced better results. None was 
ever more justified ; and if in addition to the effect of the 
food the result was expedited by a little drink, who will 
say that anything but praise can attach to him who so 
greatly contributed to an ending fraught with conse- 
quences so momentous. 

The first idea was for a tribunal composed of the five 
senior justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. 
These were Clifford, Swayne, Davis, Miller and Field. 
Clifford was the only appointee of a Democratic Presi- 
dent, though Field was of that party. Miller and Swayne 
were Republicans. Davis was classed as an Independent. 
After various meetings of the joint committee and several 
amendments to the original scheme, among which the 
exclusion of some members by lot had played an important 
part, a plan was devised and agreed to which provided for 
an electoral commission to consist of fifteen : five senators, 
five representatives and five justices of the Supreme 
Court, four of whom were those assigned to the first, 
third, eighth and ninth circuits (Clifford, Miller, Field and 
Strong), the four so chosen to select the fifth. The bill 
also provided that "no electoral vote or votes from any 
State from which but one return has been received shall 
be rejected except by the affirmative vote of the two 
Houses," and also stipulated that in the case of states from 
which there was more than one certificate, viz. : Florida, 
Louisiana, South Carolina and Oregon, all such papers 
should be "submitted to the judgement and decision as to 
which is the true and lawful electoral vote of such State" 
of said commission. It was signed by the President Janu- 
ary 29, 1877. 

In general the measure may be said to have been a 



The Electoral Commission 315 

Democratic one. It was well understood among persons 
who were conversant with the facts surrounding the pas- 
sage of the bill, that Judge David Davis would be the fifth 
justice. He had been appointed on the bench by Lincoln. 
Some even went so far as to contend that he was now a 
Democrat. However, it is not too much to say that a 
great many members of that party had voted for the 
measure chiefly because they were certain that Davis 
would be the fifteenth man. They felt so sure of the safety 
of their case in his hands and his name was so openly men- 
tioned in connection with the place, that it seems impos- 
sible that Judge Davis should have been ignorant of the 
general feeling. 

Whether Judge Davis knew of the use of his name in 
connection with the membership on the Commission, the 
fact remains that the Democrats of the country were 
counting on him to serve. Under these circumstances it 
is beyond comprehension why any of that party should 
fail to do everything possible to carry the scheme into 
execution. Yet in the face of this desire the Democrats in 
the Illinois Legislature combined with the Independents to 
choose him the United States Senator. This election 
necessitated Davis' resignation from the bench, and 
furnishes almost, if not quite, the only instance of the 
giving up of a United States Supreme Court Judgeship for 
the purpose of accepting the position of United States 
Senator. Although his retirement from judicial life was 
not to take effect till March 4, 1877, it was felt that his 
service on the Commission was impossible. 

When all the circumstances are considered one is led to 
believe that Judge Davis did not wish to act as a member 
of that great tribunal. While one may easily understand 
such a feeling, it is doubtful whether the refusal at this 
crisis can be justified from the standpoint of the duty of a 
public man toward his country. If public service be held 



3i6 Life of Nathan Clifford 

to confer upon one the right to reject all disagreeable tasks 
which fall just outside the regular work of the office which 
one occupies, yet such a construction has not been ac- 
cepted by our greatest statesmen. Judge Clifford con- 
sidered that Davis had been tried and found wanting ; that 
his conduct was that of a weak man, who, when confronted 
with a moral obligation of great responsibility, was not 
big enough to live up to the traditions of the ermine which 
he wore, and failing in courage, took the easiest way of 
slipping out of a situation fraught with burdens too great 
for his craven shoulders to bear. In the light of unbiased 
opinion, such a judgment may be too harsh. Still one 
must sympathize with the feelings of him for whom no 
labor was too exacting and no undertaking too dangerous 
if considered in the line of moral duty. Mr. Rhodes is 
authority for the statement that Judge Clifford was so 
surprised at Davis' refusal to serve that he would not 
beheve anything but a written statement to that effect 
from Davis himself. 

To the reader of history, the importance placed upon 
the election of the fifteenth man seems a slur upon the 
honor of the other fourteen. It plainly presupposes that 
all of them would vote on every question according to 
their political faith. It fails to recognize the possibility of 
their being changed in opinion by any of the facts pre- 
sented for their consideration. In other words it prac- 
tically nuUifies their usefulness as members of the Com- 
mission ' and renders them mere dummies for the regis- 
tration of the opinions of those they were chosen to repre- 
sent. It is to be regretted that so few of them rose above 
this expectation. Nor can their actions be justified on the 

^ Stanley Matthews compared the Commission to a Papal Consistory, in 
which the spirit of inspiration was upon all the members, but that of the 
Holy Ghost resided especially with the odd man. New York Tribune, 
Feb. 9, 1877. 



The Electoral Commission 317 

ground that they considered themselves as elected to carry 
out the wishes of their respective political parties. They 
were, in effect, a court, and as such should have borne 
themselves according to the ethics of American jurists. 
While it may have been difficult for men taken directly 
out of Congress to reach such a height, at least the judges 
of the highest court in the country should have been able 
easily to attain, in this instance, to the standard set by 
them daily on the bench. This phase of the matter, 
therefore, cannot fail to be a source of regret to their 
countrymen as it is a matter of pride that the patriotism 
and good sense of the citizens, as a whole, avoided a great 
catastrophe by the institution, and concurrence in the 
decision, of a body whose votes could not in all respects 
command their approval. 

In the place of Davis, the four justices elected Bradley. 
The attitude of this gentleman is in pleasant contrast to 
that of him whose seat he took. Deeply conscious of the 
magnitude of the task he was about to assume and keenly 
alive to its responsibilities, his sensitive nature revolting 
at the choice, he still accepted without hesitation. 

It has been said that the history of the Commission, 
from the time of its first sitting to that of its adjournment, 
is told by the figures "8 to 7," representing the vote on 
every question presented. While to a great extent this is 
unfortunately true, yet the Hght of fair play did occasion- 
ally change the customary ratio. 

On the first day of February, 1 877, the Houses of Congress 
came together in joint session to count the votes for Presi- 
dent and Vice-President. No dispute arose till the name 
of Florida was reached in alphabetical order. As there 
were three sets of returns from this state, objection was 
made and the case referred to the Commission according to 
the provisions of the bill. 

The tribunal met in the United States Supreme Court 



3i8 Life of Nathan Clifford 

room in the Capitol. Judge Clifford, the senior justice in 
point of service, was, by the act, chairman. The members 
of the Supreme Court, without their robes, sat in the cen- 
ter, the Senators on their right and the Representatives on 
their left. The personnel of the Commission was as fol- 
lows : from the Supreme Court, Clifford and Field, (Demo- 
crats) ; Miller, Strong and Bradley, (Republicans) ;from the 
Senate, Edmunds of Vermont, Morton of Indiana and 
Frelinghuysen of New Jersey, (Republicans) ; Thurman of 
Ohio and Bayard of Delaware, (Democrats); from the 
House of Representatives, Payne of Ohio, Hunton of Vir- 
ginia and Abbott of Massachusetts, (Democrats); Hoar 
of Massachusetts and Garfield of Ohio, (Republicans). 

The most important question to be decided and one 
which was to estabHsh the precedent in the matter of the 
elections in other disputed states, was, to quote the com- 
monly used phrase, whether the Commission had the 
power to "go behind the returns." The tribunal was con- 
fronted with the problem of who were to be considered the 
duly qualified electors. In its solution the arbiters must 
determine first whether they were confined to ascertaining 
whom the state said were chosen or whether they were able 
to inquire into the facts upon which the officials had based 
their decision, as well as into their good faith and the cor- 
rectness of their judgement. This latter view would require 
the investigation of the vote itself to see whether it had 
been conducted fairly and counted properly. One fact 
was certain. The Commission was instituted by Congress 
and by its formation was given what power in the premises 
Congress was able to confer. It could have no greater 
rights than the body which created it. The Democrats 
contended, in spite of the fact that the states were sover- 
eign and judges of their own elections, that the Commis- 
sion could declare a count, certified by the proper state 
authorities, invalid. The Republicans were equally in- 



The Electoral Commission 319 

sistent that no such privilege existed in any branch of the 
central government. 

Laying aside the constitutional question, there was also 
presented the practical one of whether in the brief time 
alloted to the deliberations (only one month), any final 
determination could be made of a problem, the solution 
of which might require the examination of thousands of 
witnesses at a tim^e when partisanship was already aroused 
to the point where an outbreak and bloodshed were daily 
threatened and with difficulty restrained. Again, the 
wisdom of bringing before the Commission and the public, 
in detail, the outrages which had disgraced the elections 
in the Southern States, might easily be open to doubt. The 
tribunal was a court of law. It was also supposed to be 
a gathering of statesmen. 

The facts regarding the controversy in the case of 
Florida and Oregon will be given somewhat in detail, as 
it was in the former case that Judge Clifford rendered a 
dissenting opinion on the question of "going behind the 
returns," and because the latter shows most clearly the 
bias of the Commission. The law of Florida provided 
that when an individual was chosen for the office of presi- 
dential elector, after decision to that effect by the State 
Board of Canvassers, the Governor should make out and 
sign a certificate, cause the same to be sealed, and trans- 
mit it to the person designated therein. The Governor 
had fulfilled these requirements regarding the four Hayes 
electors, viz. : Humphreys, Pearce, Holden and Long. A 
second set of credentials, upon which the Democrats re- 
lied, was signed by persons not authorized by the state 
statute, and was not in accordance with the findings of the 
Board of Canvassers. A third, also Democratic, bore the 
name of the Governor who had taken office January i, 
1877. The recently elected state legislature of 1877 had 
passed a law constituting a new board of state canvassers 



320 Life of Nathan Clifford 

who were all Democrats. This latter body had gone over 
the results of the balloting and pronounced the Tilden 
electors properly chosen. This award had then been 
enacted into a statute. Later, quo warranto proceedings 
had been instituted, and the court had declared the Tilden 
electors to be the properly chosen representatives of the 
state. 

The Commission decided, in effect,' that the state 
governments were the judges of their own elections; that 
an elector was a state officer; that Congress, and therefore 
the Electoral Commission, had no power to go into evi- 
dence outside the papers opened by the President of the 
Senate in the presence of the two Houses ; that all acts of 
the executive, legislature or courts of the state after the 
casting of the electoral votes on the prescribed day were 
inadmissible ; that the only question before it, was which 
men had the State of Florida, by means of certificates, 
made out in proper form and according to law, declared to 
be the authorized electors. When one considers all the 
facts, he is led to the belief that the determination not 
to "go behind the returns" had strong constitutional 
authority as well as great practical wisdom. 

Working along these lines it is evident that the Hayes 
electors were the only ones who fulfilled the above re- 
quirements, as their credentials were signed by the Gov- 
ernor in office at the time of the balloting for President 
according to the report of the state board of canvassers. 
If the Commission was forbidden by lack of power to 
examine into the conduct at local polling places it must 
accept this Governor's certificate unless the quo warranto 
proceedings had made such document invalid. Inas- 
much as the decision in this case was not announced until 
after the electoral college had assembled though the suit 
had been instituted before, it was held that at the date of 

^Proceedings of Congress and Electoral Commission, 1877, Florida case. 



The Electoral Commission 321 

that meeting the certificates of the Hayes men were the 
only ones in force. 

Judge CHfford's dissenting opinion in the case of Florida 
takes exactly the opposite view. It is a poHtical argument 
addressed to the excitement of the moment, rather than a 
closely reasoned legal decision. He emphasizes the legality 
of the election of the Tilden men and urges the adoption of 
the result of the quo warranto proceedings. He says that 
evidence to prove fraud or forgery of the certificates should 
be admitted. ' The weakness of the contention seems to be 
that fraud and forgery cannot be placed in the same class. 
If a writing is forged it is not signed by the person whose 
name appears thereon and is not such an act of an agent 
as will bind a principal, whereas in the case of fraud, an 
instrument may still be perfect on its face, and legally 
enforceable, and yet have been dishonestly issued. Forg- 
ery vitiates. Fraud is only a defence. This is a familiar 
rule of law. While proof of forgery contradicts a part of 
the certificate itself, namely, the signature, the admission 
of evidence of fraud might make necessary the passing of 
judgment upon the action of the board of canvassers and 
finally upon that of the individual voters. Fraud would 
undoubtedly be cognizable by the state authorities. The 
questions at issue, both as to the power of the Commission 
and the effect of the quo warranto proceedings, are very 
fine legal points, and it is not surprising that lawyers 
should differ upon them. The only criticism that can 
attach to the decisions is that every Democrat should have 
agreed with Judge Clifford and every RepubHcan with 
Judge Bradley. 

Having established the fact that the Commission was 
bound by the decision of the proper state authorities, the 
result in the Louisiana case could easily be foretold. All 
votes were in the customary ratio 8 to 7. The action of the 

' See Clifford's opinion in Proceedings oj Electoral Commission. 



322 Life of Nathan Clifford 

canvassing board was upheld. However, with regard to 
Oregon it would seem that the rule already laid down 
would have favored the Democratic contention. The law 
of Oregon stated that the canvass should be made by the 
Secretary of State in the presence of the Governor, and 
that the Secretary of State should prepare two lists of 
those elected which should be signed by himself and the 
Governor. Hayes unquestionably carried Oregon but 
unfortunately for him one of Republican electors, 

Watts, was a deputy postmastt therefore ineligible. 

The Governor had refused to isF a certificate, but 

had given one to the candidate n ^ the next largest 

number of votes, namely, Cronin, ^rat. Therefore 

the Commission was confront. i the dilemma 

whether to accept the credentials c il, Cartwright and 

Cronin which were signed by the ( jrnor and Secretary 
of State and in proper form accon ^ to law, or to recog- 
nize those of Odell, Cartwright ai Watts who, the can- 
vass showed, had received the highest number of votes. 
It was said that the Democrats had devised this Oregon 
scheme in order to present a state of facts in which the 
Republicans would advocate "going behind the returns." 
It is difficult to understand the award of Justice Brad- 
ley ' and that of the Commission in rejecting the certificate 
signed by the Governor and Secretary of State in behalf of 
Cronin in the face of their opinion rendered in the Florida 
case. A distinction is drawn between the two sets of 
facts on the ground that in Florida the canvassing board 
was given expressly the right to reject votes which were 
fraudulent, whereas in Oregon the Secretary of State 
could merely "canvass" the returns; that after such 
"canvass" his duties and those of the Governor were 
merely ministerial, carrying with them no power to use any 

' See Bradley's opinion in Florida Case, Proceedings of Electoral Com- 
mission. 



The Electoral Commission 323 

discretion, and obliging a certification of election to the 
man highest on the list regardless of his eHgibility. Such a 
limited authority would certainly be unreasonable. It 
seems apparent, in spite of all legal sophistry, that the 
determination to accept the election of three RepubH- 
cans, in place of two Republicans and one Democrat, 
was in effect a doing of the very thing which was held 
unconstitutional in the ^lorida decision. 

A careful reading o ' the testimony and opinions in 
the controversy leav :4eader in a maze of uncertainty 

and contradictory f ^ ';,"of which the greatest is one of 
thankfulness that t^& 'pute was finally settled without 
bloodshed. He ca:^°^ -cely avoid, however, a sense of 
regret that intransi/^^ .-"was so much in evidence. 

Two bright spotf Visible in this welter of political 
bigotry. First, in tin ' ' "lot as to whether the Cronin vote 
should be counted for rlden, the result was unanimously 
in the negative. This ignified both that the Democratic 
members of the Commis'^ion were not willing to lend them- 
selves to the support of the Oregon fraud and were con- 
sistent in their claim for an impartial examination of the 
whole controversy. Second, when the South Carolina 
case came up, the vote was solidly against the Tilden 
electors. 

Judge Clifford never rendered an opinion on any point in 
controversy after his decision in the Florida case. This 
fact is illuminating in that it shows how convinced he was 
of the impossibility of what seemed to him a fair outcome, 
even in regard to Oregon. He considered Mr. Hayes to be 
a usurper of the presidential office and never entered the 
White House during that administration. 

As a presiding officer, all parties were unanimous in 
commending his fairness and impartiality. It was no 
easy matter to conduct hearings in such a cause in a way 
to satisfy counsel on both sides, particularly when one felt 



324 Life of Nathan Clifford 

as strongly as did Judge Clifford. Yet, in this instance, his 
greatness as a judge was manifest, and no word of criticism 
has ever been spoken of his attitude. 

To quote again from newspaper articles at the time of 
his death : 

"Whatever may be the verdict of history concerning the 
motive or character of the final adjudication of that great 
committee, Americans of the present generation will bear 
witness that the calmness, wisdom and justice of the venerable 
presiding officer's rulings and decisions evoked, in the heat of 
discussion, a frank and universal admiration." 

"The most striking illustration of his judicial fairness and 
independence was given in the discharge of his difficult and 
delicate office as president of the electoral commission of 1876, 
of which he was one of the court members. To invite the 
judges to an office so essentially political was regarded by 
many as a desperate and perilous experiment. It was indeed 
one which will not soon be repeated. It was saved from 
disaster more than once by the high principle which Judge 
CHfford brought to bear at critical times, deciding incidental 
questions with reference to their essential character, and quite 
apart from their supposed partisan bearing at the moment. 
While having his own opinion as to the substantial merits of 
the case submitted, he presided with absolute integrity and 
impartiality. He allowed no delays, no shifts, no devices, no 
ingenious by-play of counsel, to block the business before 
them, which business, in his view, was to secure, not the elec- 
tion of one candidate in preference to the other, but a peaceable 
decision under the forms of law and the rules of the Court." 



CHAPTER XIII 
The Man 

The ability to experience all those numerous, inter- 
woven and varying sensations of pleasure and pain which 
come to us daily through our observation of objects 
beautiful or ugly, is derived from the leisure hours of man. 
The country bumpkin sitting on an old chair tipped back 
against the side of the general store and, between expec- 
torations of tobacco juice, whittling a stick, is an example 
of the crude beginning of what we now term art. The 
Greeks lolling about under the soft radiance of the JEgean 
skies and gazing at the distant haze of the Mediterranean, 
responded to the craving for the creation of something 
worthy of the glory on which their eyes were feasting. 
Who has not felt the same desire under similar provo- 
cation ? 

It is during these moments when the press of our en- 
deavors to live up to the duties of our existence are relaxed, 
that the softer, gentler, and more pleasing side of our na- 
ture is given free vent. Therefore the study of no man's 
life is complete without an acquaintance with his playtime. 

The stern, puritanical New Englander did not allow 
harmless enjoyment to assume its proper position in his 
scheme of life. Therefore he created little in the vast realm 
where beauty is supreme, and such contributions as he did 
make bear the imprint of severity. Still every man has his 
vacations, be they hours or months, and to them we must 
look for this phase of his character. 

It is easy to picture the life of the farmer's son during 
325 



I 



326 Life of Nathan Clifford 

the early years of the nineteenth century. Deacon Clifford 
was not profuse in his indulgence of his only male off- 
spring, yet that youngster managed to get into about the 
same scrapes and have practically the same amusements 
as other boys. 

The following extract is taken from a letter to Judge 
Clifford dated shortly after his appointment on the Su- 
preme Bench, and gives just a glimpse of a harum-scarum 
young man whom we find difficulty in associating with the 
august jurist. "Sitting by a cheerful fire one evening 
. . . my mind was carried back some thirty years to the 
scenes of my youthful days. A vision of friend Clifford 
came vividly to view. Thinks I to myself I will just write 
him a letter to remind him of the days we spent so happily 
together and I doubt not, you, as well as myself, remember 
them among the happiest of your life. . . , How many 
times we have been fishing to Coon Pond and had good 
times at the East Cove with Osgood, Morris, Quincy and 
others. Do you remember turning the waggon over in the 
woods and how you laughed after you found nobody was 
hurt ? And what splendid times we had in the Red Store 
eating sausages and boiled eggs . . . and a thousand 
things, as the advertisements say, 'too numerous to 
mention.'" 

On the whole it must be admitted that the existence of a 
country-bred boy of those days was barren of many of the 
perfectly innocent diversions which are now considered 
not only proper but educational. This was particularly 
true of the books which the youth of that time were al- 
lowed to read. To the old-fashioned New England deacon, 
a novel was the emanation of an evil mind, and no cor- 
rectly educated child was allowed to indulge in any such 
improper relaxation. In connection with this subject, an 
incident should be related which, the reader must agree, 
falls little short of the pathetic. 



The Man 327 

One evening when the family were gathered together 
after supper, Mr. Clifford noticed one of his sons, lying on 
his stomach on the floor in front of the fire, much absorbed 
in a book. To the question of the parent as to what the 
child was reading the boy replied, "David Copperfield" 
"A novel?" "Yes, sir." "Let me see it. I don't think 
much of this novel reading." The youth surrendered the 
book reluctantly and shortly after went upstairs to bed. 
Mr. Clifford retired to his library. 

The next morning at breakfast he appeared as usual and 
immediately sought out his son. "I have no objection to 
your reading that sort of book," he said. "Have you any 
more of Dickens?" The inquiry brought forth the in- 
formation that Mr. Clifford had not been to bed at all, 
but had become so fascinated with David's life that he had 
sat up all night, finishing the story at about five A. M. 
As a sequel it may be said that he afterwards read all of 
Dickens' works. Think of the enjoyment he had missed 
during all the years when good fiction might have been a 
solace to many lonely periods ! 

Manhood came early and with it men's pleasures. One 
of the greatest of these to Mr. Clifford was fishing in the 
streams of his native and adopted home. Even after he 
became judge, his brief vacations were usually taken in this 
manner. His correspondence files are filled with letters 
from Judge Taney, Judge Nelson, Miller and others thank- 
ing him for a "fine salmon," some of which, we regret to 
say, arrived at their destination in such condition as to be 
apparent to the nostrils before they were to the eye. Of 
this sport he never tired. In a letter written from Bangor 
to his parent in Washington, William Henry describes at 
length a new kind of fishing rod he has seen and imme- 
diately ordered for his father, realizing that nothing of this 
sort could fail to be of interest or concern to the man who 
was then sitting on the highest American tribunal. 



328 Life of Nathan Clifford 

He was very proud of his Waltonian abilities. The fact 
that, even after years of confinement, by reason of his 
exacting sedentary duties, he had not lost his skill, as com- 
pared with men who could give more time to his favorite 
sport, was a source of keen pleasure. He writes: 

" . . . On monday — Elisha — Horatio and I caught 65 
fish, one trout— 14 White Perch 9 Pickerals — the rest 
Yellow Perch chubs etc. etc. Caught these in the Pond 
& Brown's Brook, Tuesday, William, Major Turner, Dr. 
Wilson & Mr. Ramsdell & Horatio & I went up to the 
Mattamiscontis. Frank could not go. We started Tues- 
day morning. I rode down the Penobscot 4 miles — We 
went in a Batteau— At the end of my land ride Major 
Turner took me in his skifiE about as large as an Indian 
Canoe and set me across the Penobscot and down river 
half a mile to the mouth of the Mattamiscontis — We 
took both Boats & went up the stream 8 miles where we 
caught 10 trouts weighing 10 lbs — I caught 4 of them. 
Then passed up the stream 3 miles farther and pitched our 
tent upon a beautiful elevation on the left bank which had 
been pretty well cleared by the Woodsman's fires and was 
well covered with grass. Wood enough remained for camp 
purposes — Mr. Ramsdell, who had seen service in the 
army, pitched the tent and it had every convenience. 
Major Turner, a forester of 40 years experience, built the 
camp fires after the fashion of the great old kitchen fires. 
He constructed the fire at the entrance to the tent which 
kept off the flies and kept us warm during the night. We 
were wet, as we had occasionally to wade going the stream, 
as the water was low. My friends dressed the fish and got 
as good a dinner as I ever ate. Next morning we rose at 
}/i past 2, got a splendid breakfast and 4 o'clock started for 
the "Sam Ayer's Brook," where we caught 60 trout. I 
caught 9, the smallest would weigh Y2 lb and two would 
weigh each 2 lbs. Many of the number would weigh 2 



The Man 329 

lbs and several nearly 3 lbs each. I now come to a part of 
my story which few having no acquaintance with our 
eastern streams can believe. The trout were in 2 schools 
not more than 40 rods apart and at times during the day 
could be seen. I have no doubt we saw a thousand trouts 
in the two schools & hundreds were larger than any we 
caught. They would not keep still so that I could use my 
grapple. Wednesday night we returned to the camp very 
wet having had 2 fine showers during the day but Major 
Turner made us a rousing fire and we were soon in a good 
condition. Mr. Ramsdell got us a very excellent supper. 
We retired early and slept soundly till break of day. Got 
a good breakfast and determined to divide our company. 
Dr. Wilson and Mr. Ramsdell returned to the Sam Ayer 
Stream. William & the boy & Major Turner & myself 
went to the south branch which empties into the Matta- 
miscontis on the right bank. . . . 

' ' We came to a plot of grass on the left bank of the brook 
where the water is 10 or 12 feet deep. Prior to leaving the 
camp the company decided that my fly -hooks were too 
small & we all put large hooks on the lines, of the common 
kind v/ithout flies. We commenced to fish but I got no 
bite and the others only caught 3 small trout. After fish- 
ing an hour and a half I took off the large hook and put on 
one of the best fly hooks and the first time I threw it into 
the water two large trout "whisked " at it and I caught six, 
each of which would weigh a pound, in a few minutes, 
when the sun came out and the trout would not bite. We 
returned to camp and in an hour or two our other com- 
rades came but . . . got dinner and struck tent at one 
p. M. loaded the Boat and started down river — I took 
the head Boat. Caught two trout going down, and one 
Eel & I have no doubt 150 chubs." 

When, in his later years, he had attained to prominence, 
he felt the desire for travel. He planned to go abroad to 



330 Life of Nathan Clifford 

study first hand the judicial systems of other countries as 
well as to see for himself the masterpieces of art, of which 
through years of close confinement to duty, he had read 
and dreamed. Those were days when a government official 
was a man to whom all persons felt called upon to show 
attention and for whom it was no disgrace to accept a 
favor. In most cases such courtesies were kindly offered 
and gratefully acknowledged with no idea that the recipient 
was under any debt other than social. Passes on railroads 
and steamship lines were given and received without 
thought of future possible obligation. 

Thus when a prominent man was ready to travel abroad 
or elsewhere, he merely let the fact be known. Cabins 
and staterooms, transportation and railroad accommoda- 
tion were at once placed at his disposal. Such an action 
on the part of an official today would be greatly criticized, 
and rightly, but in the times of which we are writing, no 
thought of impropriety was created by a judge journeying 
from Maine to California or from America to England, 
with his family and party of friends, occupying the best 
quarters, absolutely free of expense. 

The dream of foreign travel, however, was not to be 
realized by Mr. Clifford. At the last moment the cares of 
business and the call of duty prevented. He did, however, 
once take a trip to the Pacific coast. With this exception, 
Judge Clifford never took a real vacation after he went on 
the bench, and it is doubtful if he ever had one. A few 
days, at most, in the country, along his beloved trout 
streams, or sitting in the sun on the piazzas of his friends' 
houses, was the only relaxation in which he ever indulged. 
It is questionable if the times afford an instance of a public 
man of equal position who played as little as did Judge 
Clifford. This trait is shown by his letters. Whether in 
Augusta, Washington, or Mexico, his time was spent in 
work. Almost none was given to amusement of any kind. 



The Man 331 

In circumstances where most persons would have had a 
royal good time, he seemed to think only of his daily 
routine. His early life in the legislature or in Congress, 
and particularly his experiences as ambassador, furnished 
opportunities for enjoyment, without interference with 
duty, such as are offered to few men. Yet in all his cor- 
respondence there is scarcely any reference to pleasure. 
The tasks before him had to be done, and were faithfully 
and laboriously accomplished without apparent thought of 
anything else. There is hardly a gleam of humor evident. 
No funny incidents, no amusing anecdotes are related. 
One almost wonders how, with such characteristics, he 
was able to rise above the drudge, and yet one readily 
understands why, in his legal theories, he belonged to the 
school of strict construction and that his opinions lack 
that imaginative, far-seeing appreciation of the future 
which has placed its indelible mark on the writings of 
Marshall. Incidentally it may be remarked that although 
the minister may not have yielded to the fascination of 
Mexico City, his son did. Schoolboy life in a so-called 
"college," surrounded with all the fascination and charm 
of the Spanish American atmosphere, was an experience 
never forgotten and often related. Boyish escapades, 
sometimes resulting in close confinement in the ' ' dungeon 
keep" of the old castle used as an academy, though they 
may have grieved the heart of the father of the partici- 
pant, were considered as the adventures of a hero, when 
narrated by the latter to his children. 

The explanation of Judge Clifford's seeming lack of 
capacity for enjoyment is not hard to find. Concentration 
to him was not the strain that it is to most men. A mental 
task once begun absorbed all his thoughts. He was at such 
times as one in a dream. Everything else was forgotten. 
Judge Fox of the District Court once observed : "It may 
well be doubted if a tribunal in any country has ever been 



332 Life of Nathan Clifford 

favored with a judge, who, for the same length of time, has 
devoted so many hours to the laborious duties of his office, 
as has Judge Clifford." Judge Davis has written: "In- 
vestigation to Judge Clifford was a labor of love, and 
industry was a recreation." Senator James W. Bradbury, 
his lifelong friend, in an address before the Maine Histor- 
ical Society, said of him: "By his power of application, 
his unparalleled ability for continuous labor and his con- 
scientious devotion to duty, he was enabled to accomplish 
his grand life work and achieve the character of a great 
jurist." So true this is, that the ordinary working time of 
the day did not suffice. After his appointment on the 
bench, he was in the habit of rising early and doing two 
hours' study before other people were about. And he 
often extended his period of labor well into the night. As 
a supplement to his industry, he was endowed with a 
remarkable memory. He often cited, from the bench, 
the book and page of a decision he had not read for 
months. 

Let it not be considered from the foregoing that he was 
an ascetic. He was far from it. While he smoked little 
and drank less, the time spent at meals was a very impor- 
tant part of his day. It was a common occurrence to see 
him at the Falmouth Hotel in Portland at about eight 
o'clock in the morning sitting at a table upon which, in 
addition to the other ordinary breakfast viands of that 
period, including meats and vegetables, would be placed 
three goblets of boiled eggs. 

His appetite was enormous, as was his size and weight 
during the latter part of his life. Though he took very 
little exercise, his heavy eating appeared not to injure his 
health. Indeed, a large quantity of food seemed essential 
to his physical body, and was apparently the reserve upon 
which his great mental labors drew. 

Mr. Clifford's early professional life was passed during 



The Man 333 

the time when Alfred, still the shire town of York County, 
was in its prime. During the sessions of court, the ladies 
of Alfred kept open house. Judges and attorneys often 
met in friendly relaxation over dishes prepared by the 
proud housewife herself in honor of the expected guests. 
Many stories are told of these feasts in which Mr. Clifford's 
love for the good things of the table is shown. 

An amusing anecdote of his judicial life is related, and 
though it may not be true, it serves as a corollary to what 
has gone before, and is interesting as a newspaper cor- 
roboration of his studious habits. It is said that when he 
came to Portland for the summer, his first act was to seek 
one John Pike, a barber, with whom he was on terms of 
intimate acquaintance. The purpose of these visits was 
to find out whether John, in accordance with custom, 
would be able to carry on the practice of shaving the 
Judge before six o'clock in the morning. The answer was 
always in the affirmative, for we are led to believe that the 
tonsorial gentleman would have sat up all night rather 
than miss the privilege. Thus the matter was each time 
concluded according to the Judge's wishes, and was sur- 
rounded with the formality and legal ceremony necessary 
to such an important contract. The purpose of the ar- 
rangement was to enable Judge Clifford to get the news 
and gossip of the day without the trouble of reading the 
newspapers, thus giving him more time for his important 
work, for John Pike was apparently a real barber and had 
all the characteristics of loquacity for which the profes- 
sion is distinguished. 

No words can add much to the picture of his early family 
life given in his letters. They show him to have been 
a devoted husband and a loving and thoughtful father. 
While his long, enforced absences from home rendered 
him, at times, a stranger to his younger children, his inter- 
est in their training and education was careful and con- 



334 Life of Nathan Clifford 

stant. No question regarding their welfare was ever too 
unimportant to be referred to his judgment. 

Washington City Jany ii, 1859 

My Dear Wife — 

I have but a moment to write. My opinion is that 
Henry better not join the gymnasium. I fear he may get 
injured. He is ambitious and venturesome & I think he 
is old enough now to take more rational exercise. I dis- 
like to deny him a small request, but my honest judgment 
is against it, looking solely to his own good. He is a good 
boy and I would yield to his wishes if I thought it was best 
but I do not. I have not heard from Charles or you. I 
am well & wish you all health and happiness. 
Your husband 

Nathan Clifford 

Washington City April 30 i860 

My Dear Son 

Should you not investigate law questions more thor- 
oughly than you have the library I fear you will not 
make a very accurate lawyer. There are certainly 81 or 
82 Eng Com Law Reports instead of twenty as you state. 
You have looked at English Law & Equity reports but 
there are at least 40 vols in that set. You were in a hurry 
when you looked. Some men are always in a hurry and 
therefore never do anything well. My habit is never to be 
in a hurry, but to do well whatever I do — & you must 
come to that habit or you will never be able to earn 
enough to pay for your mistakes. I think there are twice 
eleven vols of exchequer reports. Court will adjourn a 
week from tomorrow — 

Your father 

Nathan Clifford 



The Man 335 

This chapter would be incomplete without some men- 
tion of the woman who shared with him all the experiences 
of his long married life, and who has been described as "a 
lady of fine sense and wonderful beauty, of the stately 
and venerable kind." From the time of Judge CHfford's 
return from Mexico, the separations, which had been so 
trying to both, were, for the most part, at an end. In 
spite of slender means and cares of family, the wife was 
constantly at the side of her husband. Whether in Wash- 
ington or on the circuit, she always accompanied him. 
While she was not his mental equal, the perfect sympathy 
and complete harmony of their association was ideal. To 
her he was the oracle ; to him she was ever the sympathetic, 
understanding companion. In Washington, Mrs. Clif- 
ford's receptions at the National Hotel were conducted 
with a charm and grace and dignity which, in spite of their 
simplicity, won the admiration of all who attended them. 

Judge Clifford lived to see his sons and daughters hap- 
pily married and in their turn become the instructors of 
families of sturdy children. He took great pride in his 
grandchildren, and his letters are full of references and 
messages to them. He was always pleased when in con- 
versation or actions they showed the influence of the 
Democratic training of their forebears. In 1872, he jok- 
ingly writes to his son, who had regaled him with the say- 
ings of one of the children: "Tell Nathan I am afraid I 
cannot make President Grant any better, but if he thinks 
I can, I will see what can be done. I hope next time we will 
be able to elect a good Democratic president and then I 
will give Nathan an invitation to visit us and see the 
president." 

His Hfe was saddened, however, by the death of his son 
Nathan under very tragic circumstances. The mental 
equipment of his namesake had led to the belief that he 
might accompHsh great things, but in this case, as in so 



336 Life of Nathan Clifford 

many others, a great brilliancy proved to be but a step 
removed from catastrophe. At L ^ it was thought the 
young man might be cured, but +ime i oiled on the 
unhappy father writes, ' ' Nathan' ion casts a gloom 

over my mind which I find diffi( off." 

He took great interest in the William 

Henry, who edited the four volu 

being his decisions while on the C of 

his later correspondence relates t> these 

books, and in one of his letters he with amus- 

ing vanity, the request, that his he ^ree of LL.D. 

should be placed on the title page. 

The most difficult circumstance lich he had to 

contend during his entire life was lac .ley . There was 

probably no time throughout his cai in he could con- 

sider himself independent financic The prominent 

positions which he held necessitated nditures, large in 
proportion to his slender means. T' nildren of a mem- 
ber of Congress, United States Attornt / General Minister 
to Mexico, and Justice of the Supreme Court of the United 
States moved in a wealthy society, and demanded an 
education, literary and social, far beyond what their 
father had received and could easily manage to pay for. 
Thus his letters to them are full of caution and wise advice 
as to the uses to which the small sums he was able to send 
them were to be appHed. 



Washington City, Feb. 20 1858 

My Dear Son — 

I hardly know what to say to your request — I am 
hard pressed for money & have just received a letter from 
C. that he wants $400. to enable him to return. He must 
have it as soon as I can raise it. My wish is to oblige you 
all as far as is consistent with my means, but my funds are 



The Man 337 

low. I have 'not a dollar more than sufficient to pay my 
expenses. I shall re"-'^ home the first of March & shall 
remain there till th t day of April when I must return 

here for a long '^^ 

If all or ' lass join I must be content, & if 

you c^^ the expense I prefer you would. 

I iay till after the first of April, 

wh-. ' ' larter or nearly so will become 

due. > 

When yoi 's demand, write me, and I will 

do the best I v '4n good health & heard from your 

mother yester. is well, 

Your father 
,1 Nathan Clifford 

' ■' Portland March 23, 1858 

My Dear Son — .. 

Enclosed I send you one hundred dollars to pay your 
Bills with. I have had to borrow it at the bank, & must 
depend that you will pay up your Bills at once without 
saving one cent for spending money. If you knew what 
difficulty I have had in getting it you would conform in 
every respect to my wishes. I now owe more than I shall 
receive for salary up to the first of August & have to send 
$400 to C. to enable him to come home — How I am to 
raise it I do not know & I fear your next term Bill will 
trouble me still more. You must be very prudent — I 
shall leave for Washington on friday of this week. I 
think you better remain to the close. Devote every hour 
to study & none to folly & let your hours of sleep be regu- 
lar. Discipline yourself to regularity & uniformity in 
everything that is right & good. Remember that a fathers 
advice is valuable & that the young man who disregards 



338 Life of Nathan Clifford 

it in his youth is Hkely to mourn over his folly in riper 
years 

Your father 

Nathan Clifford 
P.S. I sent you $20 & have no letter acknowledging it. 
Write me immediately & direct to Washington City. D. C. 
& inform me just how you stand in your money affairs. 

Boston June 19, 1858 

My Dear Wife 

I sent you a Parasol by Mrs Brown & hope you will 
prize it for the source from which it came. I took an ex- 
cursion out of the City with Mr B. & family friday after- 
noon and I was much pleased both with the elegance of the 
dwellings and magnificence of the grounds. One has no 
satisfactory idea of the wealth of Boston until visiting the 
environs where it is exhibited in the greatest magnificence. 
I met nearly all the members of the Bar at Judge Curtis' 
rooms at the Revere House friday evening including Ch 
Jus. Shaw & other members of the Supreme Court. All 
things are moving on very well — I expect to remain all 
this week & then shall go to Portsmouth. My funds will 
not allow me to purchase you a trunk now & unless I send 
you one of mine monday noon you will have to borrow for 
this jotu-ney only — If I do send mine I will direct it to 
be delivered at the House so that you will have no trouble 
— I think you better not start till a week from Wednes- 
day morning — I will then have one day at Portsmouth 
to get settled and have all my arrangements made to re- 
ceive you — I shall stop at the "Rockingham House." 

You will take "the Lower route — " The "upper route" 
will carry you to Exeter — 

After counting my money if I think I can spare enough 
I shall send the dress & Boots — 



The Man 339 

I have heard from Henry He received the money & 
is well — my health is good & I feel new courage in my 
position — Give my regards to every member of the 
family. 

Very truly 

Your husband 

Nathan Clifford. 



Portland July 5 1858 

My Dear Son 

Enclosed I send you one hundred dollars — money is 
very scarce so that only $17 is a good deal — you must keep 
your expenses as low as possible — While I have but one 
to earn I have several to spend — Nothing is cheap 
which can be dispensed with — 

Your father 

Nathan Clifford 

In religion, Mr, Clifford was, at one time, a Congrega- 
tionalist. In latter years he became dissatisfied with what 
he considered narrowness in the creed of that denomina- 
tion and began to attend Unitarian meetings. He was, 
however, not strictly bound to any sect, though he was a 
regular Sunday attendant, sometimes to hear one minister 
and again to listen to the sermon of another. One Wash- 
ington paper speaks of Judge Clifford's and Judge Davis's 
constancy in church going as a rare thing among the pubHc 
men of their time. In 1869 he writes to his son: "I do 
not disapprove of your course in connecting yourself with 
the Episcopal church as I think you are pleased with the 
services and principles of that form of divine worship. 
We approve the step you have taken and would gladly 
have been present on the occasion. Make yourself a 
worthy member and bring up your children under the 



340 Life of Nathan Clifford 

influence of upright Christian examples. They are very 
promising children, and we as grandparents wish you — the 
highest satisfaction in bringing them up and preparing 
them for future usefulness." 

Harvard University, Dartmouth, Brown and Bowdoin 
Colleges honored him with the degree of LL.D. He con- 
sidered Dartmouth in the nature of a quasi alma mater and 
the recognition from it was particularly acceptable. As 
to Brown, he writes in 1868, "I have forgotten whether I 
told you that Brown University gave me a degree of LL.D. 
. . . very well for a Republican college in these high 
party times." 

{Confidential) 



Concord N. H. 
Aug. I, 1862. 

My dear Sir. 

I have just returned from Commencement at Dartmouth 
College, and I am gratified to inform you that the Trustees 
conferred upon you the degree of L.L.D; which fact was 
publicly announced from the stage by the President — 

This degree, you will recollect, was not conferred upon you 
two years ago for reasons which I then wrote you — Last 
year I was unavoidably prevented from attending Commence- 
ment, and the matter was accidentally omitted — This year 
I had only to bring it up before the Board and it was done at 
once — 

But, although it has been deferred, there is really more honor 
bestowed, so far as our college is concerned, than if it had 
been granted two years ago — for there have not been ten 
cases since the foundation of the college where they have 
bestowed the degree after it had been granted by another 
institution. 

If you can make it convenient, I should be pleased to have 



The Man 341 

you attend Commencement next year — and I have no doubt 
very many others would be equally pleased with myself. 

Yours very truly 
Ira a. Eastman 

Hon. Nathan Clifford 
Portland Maine 



As the years went by and Mr. Clifford had passed the 
three score milestone, even his rugged constitution began 
to rebel at the strain which he placed upon it. In 1870 
he made the following observation: "A bill is before the 
Senate to add Vermont and Connecticut to the first Cir- 
cuit. I do not object to Vermont, but I think six states 
are more than a fair share. I can do a great deal, but not 
everything." 

In the year i o he began to show signs of failing health. 
According to his custom ever since he had been on the 
bench, he was spending the summer in Portland. While 
he was at the Falmouth Hotel during this visit, he suffered 
a slight attack of illness which resulted in the inflammation 
of a small portion of one foot. The usual remedies were 
applied and the soreness soon disappeared. 

When he seemed to have recovered his health, he started 
for Washington, stopping in Boston for a few days to hold 
court. His labors there were brief but trying, and after 
he had again resumed his journey, but before reaching his 
destination, he suffered a stroke of apoplexy, which con- 
siderably affected his power of speech. On his arrival in 
Washington he was at once carried to his hotel. He never 
again took his seat on the bench. 

His illness was an apparent giving away of the tissues 
of the brain. In short, though but seventy-eight years of 
age, he had done the work which would ordinarily repre- 
sent the life task of a man of ninety. He was worn out. 



342 Life of Nathan Clifford 

The high tension which had been maintained for years had 
at last told. The aging rope could carry the weight 
no longer, and snapped. His days of usefulness were 
over. 

Although his mental powers were much weakened by 
the shock, his mind was never so much enfeebled but that 
he could converse upon almost any topic, and recognized 
his many friends and acquaintances who called upon him. 
He remained in Washington during the Winter and re- 
turned to Portland in the Spring. Members of his family, 
who met his carriage at the door of the Falmouth Hotel, 
found him fairly active in motion, and with an intellect 
but little impaired. 

During the last months of his life, he was occasionally 
seen upon the streets of Portland, where he was always 
cordially greeted by his acquaintances, returning their 
salutations most heartily. About a month before his 
death, he went on a visit to his brother-in-law, Hon. Caleb 
R. Ayer, in Cornish, Maine, where he hoped to regain 
his health near the hills and valleys of his youth, 
breathing again the pure air of his adopted home. 

For a time his expectation seemed to be in the process of 
realization. He satin the sun, read his favorite authors, and 
sometimes renewed his youth by fishing the streams he 
loved so well. But his days were numbered. The great 
frame was tired. The massive brain was worn out. The 
inroads of disease had reached the point where they could 
not be arrested. The soreness of foot again returned, 
grew worse, and as a last resort amputation was tried. 
All efforts were fruitless, however, and he died July 25, 
1881. 

It falls to the lot of few to lead as varied a life as Judge 
Clifford. Mr. R. T. Merrick in his remarks before the 
Supreme Court of the United States in memory of the dead 
jurist used the following language : 



The Man 



343 



His long career was distinguished by public service in a 
greater number and in a greater variety of important offices, 
state and federal, legislative, executive, and judicial, than were, 
probably ever held in this country by any other man ; and as 
rising higher and higher he left the one to assume the robes 
of the other, the gratitude of his countrymen for the past was 
always mingled with their expressions of confident hope for 
the future. 

There can be no more fitting tribute to his memory than 
the words of his son cut in the massive stone monument 
which marks the grave of Judge Clifford in Evergreen 
Cemetery, Portland, Maine: 



A pure and upright man : 

A wise Legislator : 

A skillful Diplomatist: 

A profound Jurist : 

A just Judge. 



INDEX 



Abbot, 57 

Abbott, J. G., 318 

Abolition Societies, 21 

Adams, John, 15; 91 ; 273 

Adams, John Quincy, 13; 17; 18; 83; 
96 

Advertiser, Portland, 34 note; 36; 
37; 43 note; 75 note; 133; 137; 
300 

Alabama River, 206 

Alcalde, 216; 217 

Alford, J. C, 106 

Alfred, Maine, 77; 333 

Alien and Sedition Laws, 92 

Allen, Elisha H., 103 note 

Anderson, Hugh J., 41; Del. Dem. 
Nat. Convention 1832, 44; 72 
and note; Rep. to Congress, 81; 
84; 85; 104; 106; Anderson- 
Kavanagh fight for Governor, 
137, 147, 148; Urges Nathan 
Clifford for Attorney General, 
138; 145; Administration sup- 
porter, 245 

Anderson, Thomas C, 309; 310 

Anderson, Walker, 206 

Anti-masonic Party, 46 

Appleton, John, 141; 151; 241; 245; 
252:253; 268 

Appleton, Nathan D., 77 

Appomattox River, 299 

Arangoes, Don Francisco, 189; 191; 
198; 199; 200; 219 

Argus, Portland, 9, note; 13, note; 
23, note; 24, note; 25, note; 27, 
note; 28 and note; 41, note; 42, 
note; 44, note; 53, note; 55, note; 
57, note; 60, note; 75, note; 77, 
note; 78, note; 80; 300 

Arista, Mariano, 210 

Ashburton, Lord, 133 

Atherton, Charles G., 256; 259 

Atlanta, Ga., 168 



Attorney General of Maine, N. C, 

65; 66; 67; 77; Disagreement 

between Clifford and Pierce, 78, 

79, 80 
Auburn, Ala., 168 
Augusta, Georgia, 168 
Augusta, Maine, 27; President 

Polk's journey to, 151 
Ayer, Caleb R., 81 and note; 135; 

342 
Ayer, Elisha, 12; 37 and note; 49 & 

note; 69 
Ayer, George, 60 and note; in; 135 
Ayer, Hannah, Marriage to Nathan 

Clifford, 12 
Ayer, Capt. James, 11 ; 12 
Ayer, James, 37, note; 60 and 

note 
Ayer, Dr. James, 11; 48; 64 and 

note 
Ayer, Jane, 37, note 
Ayotla, Mexico, 174 



B 



Baltimore & Ohio R. R., 45 
Baltimore, Nat. Dem. Convention 
at, 42; Clifford's impression of, 

50 
Bankrupt Bill, 119; 120; 130 
Banks, Gen. N. P., 305 
Barron, Commodore James, 93 
Bartlett, Sidney, 275 
Bayard, T. P., 318 
Beauregard, Gen. P. G. T., 278 
Beecher, Dr. Lyman, 48 and note 
Benton, Thomas H., 246; 250 and 

note; 251; 266; 267 
Bethel, Maine, 69 
Biddle, Nicholas, 31 
Blaine, James G., 299; 300; 302; 

303 

Boston, Mass., Description of mar- 
ket, 48; City of, 270 

Boston & Worcester R. R., 45 



345 



346 



Index 



Boutelle, T., 38 

Bradbury, Bion, 297; 301; 306 

Bradbury, Jabez, ']2 and note 

Bradbury, James W., 2"]; Friend- 
ship with N. C, 41, 252; 52; 66; 
Efforts in behalf of N. C. for Atty. 
Gen., 138; 139; Administration 
supporter, 245 

Bradley, Joseph P., Appointed 
Justice Supreme Court U. S., 
280, 281; 282; 283; In legal ten- 
der cases, 284; Appointed Elec- 
toral Commission, 317, 318; 321; 
Oregon Case, 322 

Bronson vs. Rhodes, 282 

Brooke, Gen. G. M., 170 

Brown, Philip Henry, 69 

Brownson, 39 

Buchanan, James, Accompanies 
Polk to Maine, 151 ; 155 ; Opposed 
to Mr. Clifford, 156, 157; Polk's 
opinion of, 159; As to Trist, 157, 
158, 160; 160; 161; 162; In- 
structions to Clifford, 175, 189, 
198 to 200; Views on proper 
relations between U. S. & Mexico, 
200; Instructions of, to N. C. in 
re Protocol, 213, 214, 215, 239, 
240; To Rosa on Protocol, 229, 
247; Compliments Clifford, 249, 
251, 252; Views on Wilmot 
Proviso, 249, 251; Views on 
slavery, 250; Views on American 
Ministers, 251; Candidate for 
President, 254; 255; 256; 258; 
260; Influence in Penna., 257; 
Views on Kansas-Nebraska Act, 
266; Minister to England, 266; 
Nominated for President, 266; 
267; 268; 269; Elected Pres- 
ident, 270, 271; Reasons for 
appointing N. C. on Supreme 
Bench, 273, 274; 279 

Buena Vista, Battle of, 154, 204 

Burns, Samuel, 10 

Bustamante, Anastasio, 190 

Butler, Gen. W. O., 160; 163; 173 
and note; 186 

Calhoun, John C, 47; 49; Theory 
of as to slavery in Mexico, 243; 
244 

California, State of, 216; 218; 244; 

Cameron, Simon, 291 
Campbell, Judge James, 255; 257; 
259 



Campbell, John A., 275; 276; 2^^\ 

27^; 279 
Canvassing Boards, 309; 319 
Carpenter, E. W., 201; 203; 204 
Carpet-bag Rule, 309 
Carroll, Charles, of Carrollton, 47 
Cartwright, John C, 322 
Casanave, George, 309 
Cass, Lewis, 50 and note; 163; 249; 

Candidate for Presidency, 204, 

254; 257; 259 
Castme, Maine, Town of, 70 ; 74 
Catholic, Anti-, feeling, 254; 255; 

257; 259; 260 
Catron, John, 275; 280 
Cerro Gordo, 155 
Channing, William Ellery, 48 and 

note 
Chapul tepee, 155; 176; 177; 179 
Charleston, S. C, 168; 278 
Chase, Salmon P., Writes address 

to Congress, 263 ; Appointed Chief 

Justice, 279; 281; 282; 283; 284; 

285 
Chesapeake, The, 93 
Chief Justice Sup. Ct. U. S., 274- 

275, (Taney); 276, 279, 282, 283, 

284, (Chase) ; 280, (Waite) 
Choate, Rufus, 275 
Cholera, 205; 206 
Churubusco, 176 
Cilley, Jonathan, Death of, 132 
Circuit Court, U. S., 297; 298; 299; 

304; 306; First, 270, 341 
Civil War, The, 15; 272; 278; 279; 

285; 286; 296 
Clark, Daniel, 299; 300; 301; 

306 
Clay, Henry, 49; 253 
Clayton, John M., 215; 233; 246; 

Clifford, Charles E., 37, note; 
III; 112; 135; 152; 205; 300; 

334 
Clifford, Deacon Nathaniel, 4; 5; 8; 

326 
Clifford, George F., 144; 165; 176; 

205; 274; 300 
Clifford, Hannah Ayer, (Mrs. 

Nathan), 152; 166; 242; 250; 

251; 253; 335 
Clifford, Hannah Frances, 69 and 

note; 205 
Clifford, Isaac, 3 

Clifford, Lydia Simpson, 169; 176 
Clifford, Nancy Ayer, 37, note; 

131: 152 



Index 



347 



Clifford, Nathan, Birth, 3; Birth- 
place, 4; Childhood, 4, 5, 327; 
Education, 5, 6; Law Student, 7, 
8; Admission, 8, 12; Selection of 
Home, 8, 9; Credentials of char- 
acter, 10; Arrival in Newfield, 1 1 ; 
Marriage, 12; Supports Jackson, 
13; Elected to State Legislature, 
13. 51. 59; Legislative Com- 
mittees, 24, 27; First Speech in 
Legislature, 24; Speech on Bank 
Tax, 24, 25 ; Speech on Abolition 
in D. C, 25, 26; Characteristics 
as Legislator, 26; Resolutions vs. 
U. S. Bank, 28; Speech vs. U. S. 
Bank, 27-34; Member Boundary- 
Committee, 38, 39; Growth of, as 
Legislator, 41; Elected Speaker, 
41; Delegate Democratic Na- 
tional Convention of 1832, 42-44, 
46, 50; Introduces resolutions in 
favor Jackson and Van Buren, 42 ; 
Trip to Washington and return, 
45. 47, 48, 49, 50; Speaker House, 
Maine, 51, 59; Speeches as 
Speaker, 51-59; Vote of thanks 
to, 57; Attorney General, Maine, 
65, 66, 67, 68; Candidate U. S. 
Senate, 75, 246, 261; Elected to 
Congress, '^'j ; Fierce-Clifford 
Atty. Gen. Controversy, 77-81; 
Takes seat in Congress, 8 1 ; Views 
on attitude of Maine Rep., 82, 
83; Type of mind of, 5, 87; 
Thoroughness, 87; Speech on 
Appropriation Bill, 88-102; Re- 
elected to Congress, 103; Boards 
at Mrs. Kennedy's, no; Free 
Trade Speech, in; Sunday in 
Washington, 113; Speech of, 
against Public Land Act, 114, 
115, 116; Views on Temperance 
Societies, 1 17, 1 18 ; Speech against 
Whig Tariff, 124, 125, 126, 127; 
Attitude on Free-Trade, 124; 
Attitude on Protection, 124; 
Attitude on Ad valorem duties, 
125; Party at Russian Embassy, 
129; Navy Bill, 131; Speech 
against Northeastern Boundary 
Settlement, 133; Attitude under 
abuse, 133; Blness of, 134, 136; 
Defeated for Renomination, 136, 
137; Description of, when de- 
feated, 137; Attorney General, 
137, 138, 141, 142, 143, 144; 
Qualifications for Attorney Gen- 



eral, 140; Cause of selection as 
Atty. General, 146, 147, 148; 
Duties of Atty. General, 149; 
Resignation as Atty. General, 
150; Confirmation as Atty. Gen- 
eral, 151; Accompanies Polk to 
Maine, 151; Views on Mexican 
War, 155, 156, 157, 158; Opposes 
Buchanan, 156, 157; Influence on 
Mexican War, 157; Suggests 
Trist's recall, 158; 159; Fitness for 
Commissioner, 161-164; Appoint- 
ment as Commissioner to Mexico, 
163; Resigns as Atty. General, 
163; Mexico, 165, 1 66; Reasons for 
acceptance Mexican Mission, 167, 
176; Journey Washington to New 
Orleans, 167-169; Reception in 
New Orleans, 169; Journey New 
Orleans to Vera Cruz, 170, 172; 
Journey Vera Cruz to Mexico 
City, 171, 173, 174, 178; Journey 
to Queretaro, 175, 176, 184; Life 
in Mexico City, 173, 176, 177, 
178, 180; Submits credentials as 
Commissioner, 182; Presents cre- 
dentials, 184, 185; Exchanges 
ratifications, 185; Signs Protocol, 
185, 187; Return from Queretaro, 
188, 189; Views on Mexican 
conditions, 189 to 194, 196, 197, 
211, 212, 222, 225; Views on 
proper relations between Mexico 
and U. S., 195, 196; Appointed 
Minister, 197, 198; Instructions 
to, 198-200; Retum to U. S., 198, 
204; Accepts leave, 201 ; Presents 
Letter of Credence and Polk's let- 
ter, 201, 202; Embarks again for 
Mexico, 204; Description of re- 
turn trip, 205-211; Instructions 
to, re Protocol, 213, 214, 215; 
On Tripuato affray, 216, 217, 
218; On Protocol, 200, 221, 223- 
239; On Mexican justice, 225; 
Instructions of Clayton to, on 
Protocol, 235, 236; Ends Mexican 
Mission, 236-239; Returns to 
U. S., 240; Financial Status, 167, 
241; Changes residence, 241; 
Position in Democratic Party, 
242, 245; As minister, 249, 251, 
252; Favors Buchanan, 254; Sup- 
ports Pierce, 254, 257, 258; 
Delegate Democratic National 
Convention, 1852, 254; Influence 
in Penna., 257, 258; Neal Dow 



348 



Index 



Clifford, Nathan — Continued 

Trial, 262; On Kansas-Nebraska 
Act, 265, 266; Stumps Maine for 
Buchanan, 266; Letters in re 
Judgeship, 267, 268, 269; Ap- 
pointed Judge Supreme Court 
U. S., 270; Qualifications for, 271, 
272, 273 ; Devotion to Democratic 
principles, 14, 273; Associates 
with, on bench, 275; Position 
and influence, 276; And Campbell, 
277-279; Only Democratic ap- 
pointee, 275, 280; Ex-Party Milli- 
gan, 280; Ex-Party Garland, 281 ; 
Cummings vs. Missouri, 281; 
Hepburn vs. Griswold, 283; Dis- 
sents in Knox vs. Lee, and Parker 
vs. Davis, 284; Position during 
Civil War, 285; Attitude toward 
War Administration, 286; Day 
vs. Bufifington, 287; Views on 
Constitution, 287-290; Type 
Judge, 290; Tribune, New York, 
Editorial on, 290-291 ; Breadth of 
view, 291 ; Literary style of opin- 
ions, 292; Assiduity, 292, 293; 
Judicial behavior, 293; How 
remembered, 293, 294; Presides 
Electoral Commission, 295, 318; 
Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow, 
297, 298, 300, 303; Defends in 
Dow case, 301, 302; Letter of 
Webb to, re same, 303, 304; 
Letter of Webb to Blaine, re 
same, 304-307 ; As member Elect- 
oral Commission, 314; His opin- 
ion of David Davis, 316; Dis- 
senting Opinion of, in Florida 
case, 319, 321; Criticism of said 
opinion, 321; Opinion of Hayes, 
323 ; As presiding officer Electoral 
Commission, 323, 324; Love of 
fishing, 327; Vacations, 330; Lack 
of Humor, 331; Ability to con- 
centrate, 331, 332; Regularity of 
life, SS2; Appetite, 332; Family 
life, S3;i ; Honorary Degrees, 336, 
340; Lack of means, 336, 337; 
Religious views, 339 ; Final illness 
and death of, 341-343 ; Number of 
offices held, 343 

Clifford, Nathan, VI; 335 

Clifford, Nathan J., 37, note; 119; 
154; 205; 335-336; 336 

Clifford, Nathaniel, 4 

Clifford, WilliamHenry, 84and note; 
154; 165; 166; 205; 300; 334 



Coahuila, Province of, 153 

Cobb, Howell, 244; 250 

Cogswell, Charles N., 66 

Coleman's National Hotel, 143 

Collector vs. Day, 286 

Colorado, State of, 263 

Commercial Coffee House, 47 and 
note 

Compromise of 1850, 253; 261-265 

Confederacy, 296 

Confederation, Articles of, 89; 288 

Congress, Special Session of, 1807, 
94; Adjourns 1840, 102; 26th 
meets, 103; Special Session of 
27th, 108, 109; 116; 27th Special 
Session Adjourned, 122; 27th 
Congress meets, 123; Attitude of 
members, 131; Adjourns, 134; 
First reduction of Maine repre- 
sentation in, 136; Of 1849, 244; 
Acts of July 23 , 1 866, 280 ; Acts of 
April 10, 1869, 280 and note; 
Reconstruction Acts, 281; Legal 
Tender Acts, 281-285; Powers of, 
288, 289; 22nd Joint Rule, 310, 
311; 312; Powers as to Electoral 
Votes, 318, 320; Patriotism of, 
308; Meets in Joint Session to 
count votes, 317 

Congressional Election of 1842, 
postponed, 136 

Connecticut, State of, 341 

Conner, Commodore David, 171 
note 

Constitution of United States, 15; 
89; 90; 116; 243; 272; 287:289; 
Fifteenth Amendment, 311 ; Pro- 
vision for counting electoral votes, 
310,311 

Contreras, 176 

Cornish, Maine, 342 

Couto, J. B., 184 note; 185; 227; 228 

Crawford, Judge M. J., 277 

Cronin, E. A., 322 

Cuevas, L. G., 184 note; 185; 211; 
217; 218; 219; 221; 222; 223; 225; 
227; 228 

Cumberland Club, 241 

Cummings vs. Missouri, 281 

Cummings, E. L., 37, note 

Gushing, William, 275 

Curtis, Benjamin R., 270; 275 

D 

Dakota, State of, 263 
Dana, John W., 151 



Index 



349 



Dana, Judah, 75 

Daniel, Peter V., 275; 276; 279 

Dartmouth College, 6; 7 

Davee, Thomas, 81 

Davis, David, 279; 280; 281; 282; 

283; 284; 314; 315; 316; 339 
Davis, Woodbury, 297 ; 305 ; 306 
Day vs. Buffington, 287 
Declaration of Independence, 16; 

288 . 

Democratic Convention, First Dis- 
trict, 1843, 136; 137 

Democratic National Convention, 
of 1832, 42; Method of choosing 
Delegates, 44; Delegates to, 44; 
46-47; 49; 50; 81; of 1847, 147; 
148; 152; of 1852, 254: 256; 259; 
261; of 1856. 266 

Democratic Party, 13; 14; 24; 
Election Delegates National Con- 
vention of 1832, 42; Attitude of, 
as to Tariff and Internal Im- 
provements, 86, 87, 96, 99, 100; 
Attitude on Powers of Central 
Government, 87; Attitude toward 
U. S. Bank, 90, 91, 96; Construc- 
tion of Constitution, 91, 96; 
Success of, 92 ; 93 ; Attitude of, on 
Public Domain, 86, 100, 109; 
Attitude of, as to Abolition of 
Slavery, loi, 253, 272, 273; De- 
feated 1840, 103; 112; Majority 
regained, 134; In Maine, 1844, 
147; In Maine 1849, 245; In U. S. 
1849, 244; In U. S. 1850, 253; 
In Pennsylvania, 249, 256, 257, 
260; In Election 1852, 261; 
Prohibitory Law, 262; Splits, 265; 
Attitude of, on Secession, 287, 
297, 298; In 1876, 295; Belief as 
to powers of State and Federal 
Governments, 311, 318; In Illi- 
nois Legislature nominates Davis, 
315; National Committee, 309; 
Oregon Case, 322 

Democratic Republican Party, Or- 
ganization of, i6; Supports Jack- 
son, 96 

District of Columbia, 251 

Dixmont, 73 

Douglas, Stephen A., 161; 254; 263; 
264; 265; 271 

Dow, Neal, 262; 290; 296; 297; 299; 

_300; 303; 304; 305; 306 

Drummond, Josiah H., 297; 301; 
305:306 

Dummer, Charles, 38 



Dunlap, Robert P., President of 
Maine Senate, 23; 41; Delegate 
Dem. Nat. Convention of 1832, 
44; 66; 67; 68, note; 75; 79 

Duties, Ad Valorem and specific, 
Nathan Clifford on, 125 



E 



Eastman, Ira A., 341 

Edmunds, G. F., 318 

Electoral Commission, 290; 308; 
314; 315; 316; 317; Personnel 
of, 318; Powers of, 318, 320; 
Problems of, 319; Decision in 
Florida case, 320; Decision in 
Louisiana case, 321; Decision in 
Oregon case, 322-323; Cronin 
vote, 323; South Carolina vote, 
323 

El Pinon, Mexico, 210 

Embargo, The, 18; 94 

Emerson, William, 38; 42 

Emery, Nicholas, 73 

Endora, S. S., 170 

Era of Good Feeling, 96 

Evans, George, 81; 103, note 

Evergreen Cemetery, 343 



Fairfield, John, 41 ; Delegate Demo- 
cratic National Conventiorn 1832, 
44; 47 and note; Candidate for 
Governor, 78, 102; 137; Supports 
Clifford for Atty. Gen. U. S., 
138, 139, 142; United States 
Senator, 146, 147; 148; United 
States Senator, 246 

Falmouth Hotel, 341; 342 

Federalist Party, 13; 15; 16; 24; 89; 
Attitude toward U. S. Bank, 90- 
91 ; Construction of Constitution, 
L^; 93; 94; Attitude of, toward 
"''ar of 1812, 95; 96; 97; 108; 
27y,275 

Ferry, Thomas W., 310; 311 

Fessenden, William Pitt, Opposition 
to Mr. Clifford, 27; Answers Mr. 
Clifford's speech on U. S. Bank, 
34. 35. 36; 37; 38; 103 and note; 
129; 261; 262; 271 

Field, Stephen J., 279; 280; 281; 
283; 284; 302: 314; 318 

First Circuit, 270 

Fiscal corporation, 109; 120 



Wa 



350 



Index 



Florida, State of, 308; 309; 310; 

314; 319; 320 
Forsyth, John, 50 and note 
Fox, Edward, 297-8 ; 301 ; 305 ; 306 
Free trade, Nathan Clifford's atti- 
tude on, 124 
Frelinghuysen, F. T., 318 
Fremont, John C, 246; 266; 270 
Fryeburg, 75 
Fugitive Slave Law, 253 
Fundy, Bay of, 21 



Gag Rule, 114 

Gardiner, Town of, 65; 81 

Garfield, James A., 318 

Garileay, Jose Miguel, 173 

Garland, Ex Parte, 281 

Garland, J., 106 

Georgia, State of, 83 

Gerrish, Joseph M., 38, 39 

Globe, Congressional, 83; 84; 85; 87 

Goodenow, Daniel, 102 

Goodwin, Jeremiah, 44; 47 and note; 
66 and note 

Grafton County, N. H., 3 

Grant, U. S., 280; 299; 309; 312; 
314:335 

Grapeshot, The, 286 

Graves, William J., 132 

Great Britain, Attitude toward 
U. S., 92; Bank circulation of, 
125; Specie payments suspended 
in, 125; Recognition of Texan 
Independence, 148 

Greeley, Horace, 269 

Greely, Eliphalet, 151 

Greene, Roscoe G., 72 and note 

Grier, Robert C, 275; 280; 281; 
282; 283 

Griffin, Ga., 168 

Guadalupe Hidalgo, Treaty of, 159; 
Amendments, 181; 182; Passes 
Mexican Senate, 183, 184; Proto- 
col to, 185, 186, 187, i88, 226, 
227, 230, 232, 246, 248, 250; 
252; Exchange of ratifications, 
185; 214 

Guanajuato, 190; 193; 216 



H 



Hamilton, Alexander, 89 
Hamlin, Hannibal, 246; 266 
Hampton, New, Literary Institute 
of, 7 



Hannegan, Edward A., 162 
Hargous, L. G., 166; 171; 189 
Harlan, John M., 280 
Harrison, William Henry, 102; 

103; 106; Calls special session of 

Congress, 108; Election of, 108; 

Death, 108 
Hartford Convention, 95; loi 
Haverhill Academy, 6 
Hayes, Rutherford B., 280; 295; 

301; 308; 309; 310; 312; 320; 

321,322:323 
Hayne, Robert Y., 50 and note 
Hell bent for Gov. Kent, 103 
Henshaw, David, 47 
Hepburn vs. Griswold, 282, 283, 

284 
Herald, York County, 77 note 
Herrera, J. J. de, 181; 192; 195; 

200; 201; 202; 211; 222; 251 
Herrick, Joshua, 136 
Hewitt, Abram S., 309 
Hickman vs. Jones, 286 
Hiram, Maine, 69 
Hoar, G. F.,318 
Holden, William H., 319 
Holmes, John, 43 
House of Representatives, U. S., 

Judiciary Committee of, 313 
Humphreys, F. C, 319 
Hunt, Ward, 280 
Hun ton, Eppa, 318 
Huntress, S. S., 151 
Hutton, I. T., 217; 218 



Icaza, Antonio d', 197 

Impressment of American Seamen, 
92 

Independent Party in Illinois Legis- 
lature nominates Davis, 315 

Internal Improvements, 86; 87; 96; 
99; 100 

Iris, S. S., 204 



J 



Jackson, Andrew, 13; r8; 28; 35; 

42 ; 43 ; 47 ; 49 ; 96 ; 97 ; Recognition 

of Texan Independence, 147; 

261; 275 
Jalapa, Mexico, 174 
Jarauta, Padre, 190; 193; 200 
Jarvis, Charles, 38; 39; 42 
Jefferson, Thomas, Organization of 

Democratic Republican Party, 



Index 



351 



Jefferson, Thomas — Continued 

16; 18; Attitude toward U. S. 

bank, 22; 91 ; 92; Proclamation of 

July 1807, 94; loi; 275 
Johnson, Andrew, 281 
Johnson, Bradish, 295; 296; 297; 

303; 304; 305; 306 
Johnson, Cave, 161 ; 162 
Johnson, Reverdy, 133 
Johnston, Gov., 255 
Johnston, Gov., 169 
Jones, James C, 260 
Jones Boarding House, 151 
Jury Trials, 286 



K 



Kansas, State of, 271; Kansas- 
Nebraska Act, 262, 263, 264, 265, 
266 

Kavanagh, Edward,I37 ; 146 ; 147 ; 148 

Keith, Caleb, 10 

Kemble, Fanny, 46 

Kenner, 309 

Kent, Chancellor James, 291 

Kent, Edward, 78; 102; Elected 
Governor, 103 

King, Samuel, 68 

King, William R., 251 and note; 
252:254 

Knowlton, Ebenezer, 39; 42 

Know-nothings, 254 

Knox vs. Lee, 284 



Lacunza, Don Jos^ Maria de, 223; 
224; 225; On Protocol, 232-234, 
239, 240 

Lafayette Hotel, 151 

Lamon, Col., 278 

Lane County vs. Oregon, 282 

Latham vs. U. S., 283 

Legal Tender Decisions, 281-285 

Legislature of Maine, 12; Nathan 
Clifford elected to, 13; Of 1831, 
23; Meets first time in Augusta, 
1832, 27; Approves resolution 
boundary committee, 39; Adopts 
recommendation of N. E. Bound- 
ary Comm., 40 

Leopard, The, 93 

Libby, James, 119 

Limerick, Maine, 9; 69 

Lincoln, Abraham, 279; 280; 315 

Littlefield, N. S., 103 note; no; in; 
112; 119; 135 



Livingston, Edward, 49 and note 

Loco Focos, 260 

Long, Thomas W., 319 

Loring, C. F., 275 

Louisiana, State of, 263; Bradish 

Johnson vs. Neal Dow, 296, 297, 

298, 299, 302, 304, 305, 306; 

Electoral Commission, 308, 309, 

310,311,314,321 
Lowell, Joshua A., 81; 103 note; 

105 and note; 119; 135 



M 



McCrate, John D., 38; 39; 42 

McCulloch vs. Maryland, 22 

Machias, 70; East, 81 

Mclntyre, Rufus, 66 and note 

McLane, Louis, 43; 50 and note; 159 

McLean, John, 275; 276 

Madison, James, 17; loi 

Maine, State of. Industries affected 
by tariff of abominations, 19; 20; 
Admission to Union, 20; Con- 
gressional election 1843, 136; 
Representation in Congress re- 
duced, 136; 270; Prohibitory Law, 
262 

Mansfield, Lord, 291 

Mansion House, 60 and note 

Marcy, W. L., 160; 254; 258 

Mars Hill, 22 

Marshall, Alfred, 103 note; ill; 
119; 135 

Marshall, John, 275; 290; 291 

Mason, John Y., 138; 139; 142; 
160 

Massachusetts, State of, 19; 155; 
270 

Massachusetts, S. S., 169; 170; 172 

Matamoras, 153 

Matthews, Stanley, 316 note 

Mazatlan, Mexico, 218 

Meguire, John L., 38; 42 

Mellen, Prentiss, 70 and note 

Merrick, R. T., 342 

Metis River, 22 

Mexico, Texas revolts from, 147; 
Mexican War, 153, 154, 155, 242; 
City of, capture, 155; Export 
duty, 156; 157; 158; Treaty with, 
confirmed by Senate, 159; Com- 
missioners, 159, 212, 226, 231, 
246; Treaty, 161, 165, 181, 186, 
226, 230, 247, 252; 162; Mexico 
City, 171, 172, 174, 177, 178, 184, 
185, 186, 210; People, 178; Rati- 



352 



Index 



Mexico — Continued 
fications exchanged with, 185; 
Payment money to, 186, 194, 248; 
Protocol, 186, 187, 213-215, 219- 
221, 223-240; Conditions in, 190, 
191, 192, 193, 194, 196, 197, 211, 
212, 222; N. C. views on proper 
relations between U. S. and, 195- 
196; Employment U. S. troops 
in, 199, 200; Buchanan's views 
on proper relations bet. U. S. and, 
200; Tariff, 202, 219; Boundaries 
between U. S. and, 203; Route 
through, 216; Congress, 230; 
Inhabitants of ceded territories, 
247; Catholics under treaty, 247; 
Land titles under treaty, 248 

Miller, 39 

Miller, Samuel F., 279; 281; 282; 
283; 284; 302; 314; 318 

Miller vs. U. S., 286 

Milligan, Ex-Parte, 280; 281 

Mississippi River, 296 

Missouri Compromise, The, 20; 
263-266; 272 

Mobile, Ala., 205; 206; 207; 208 

Moderados, 222 

Molino del Rey, 176 

Monroe, James, 17 

Montana, State of, 263 

Monterey, 153 

Montgomery, Ala., 168; 205; 279 

Montgomery, S. S., 206; 207 

Mora y Villamil, Gen., 177 and note; 
180; 181 

Morton, O. P., 318 



N 



National Bridge, 210 

National Hotel, Washington, D. C, 

143 
National Republican Party, 27 
Nelson, Samuel, 275; 277; 278; 280; 

281; 283; 284 
Netherlands, King of, 22; 38 
Newfield, Maine, 9; 11 ; 13; 26; 64; 

67; 68; 120; 205; 241 
New Hampshire, State of, 155; 257; 

270; 299 
New Orleans, Battle of, 95, 96; City 

of, 169, 179, 201, 204, 205, 206, 

207, 211, 296, 304, 305, 309 
New Mexico, State of, 244 
New York, State of, 296; 304 
Newton, Commander (Navy), 207; 

208; 209 



Niles' Register, 47 

No-Party Times, 96 

Non- Intercourse, 94 

Norridgewock, 71 

North Carolina, State of, 279 

Northeastern Boundary Question, 
21; 22; Joint standing Com- 
mittee of legislature on, 38; 
Preble's suggestion of settlement, 
39; Committee on, 39; Resolutions 
adopted by Committee, 39 and 
40; 1 09; settlement of, 133 

Nueces River, 153 

Nullification, 19 



Oakley, Thomas J., 291 

O'Brien, Jeremiah, 38; 39 

Odell, William H., 322 

Ojo de Agua, 174 

Oregon, State of, 152; 308; 314; 
319; Case of. Electoral Com- 
mission, $22 

Oregon, S. S., 168 

Orford, N. H., 10 

Orleans, St. John, S. S., 168; 207 

Ossipee, Little, River, 9; 12 

Otero, Mariano, 195; 202; 203; 
211 



Palacio, Riva, 197 

Palmer, Barnabas, 82 

Palo Alto, 153 

Panic of 1837, 86 

Paredes, y Arrillaga, Mariano, 190; 

192; 193; 200; 211 
Paris, Maine, 69 
Parker vs. Davis, 284 
Parris, Albion K., 70 and note; 140; 

141 
Parris, Virgil D., 81; 105 and note 
Parsonsfield, Maine, 9 
Parties, Political Organization of, 

88 
Patterson, Gen. Robert, 173 and 

note 
Payne, H. B., 318 
Pennsylvania, State of, 257; 258; 

260; 261 
Pena, Don Manuel de la Pena y, 

184 and note; 197 (called Cuevas 

in letter) ; 222 
Pensacola, Fla., 209 
Perote, 174 



Index 



353 



Perry, Commodore M. C, 163; 
171 and note 

Pickens, Gov. Francis W., 278 

Pearce (Pierce), Charles H., 319 

Pierce, Franklin, 140; 254; 255; 256; 
259; 260; 261; 275 

Pierce, George W., 77; 78; 79; 80; 
81 

Pierce, Josiah, 78 

Pike, John, 333 

Pitner, Reuben M., 72 

Polk, James K., 103; 137; 138; 139; 
140; 143: 146; 148; 150; Journey 
to Maine, 151; Democratic nomi- 
nation, 152; Supports claim of 
Texas, 153; 153; Disagrees with 
Buchanan, 156; And Trist, 158; 
159; Opinion of Buchanan, 160; 
Opinion of Clifford, 163, 164; 
Letter to Herrera, 201 ; Views on 
Protocol, 215, 246, 247, 248; 
250; 251; 271; 273; 275 

Portland, Maine, 9; 23; 26; 151; 
241; 262; 299; 342; 343 

Preble, William P., 39 

President, United States, Powers of, 
289 

Press, Portland Daily, 299 

Protection, Nathan Clifford's atti- 
tude on, 124 

Protocol, Treaty Guadalupe Hi- 
dalgo, 185; 186; 187; i88;2i3;2i4; 
215; 219-221; 223-240; 246; 247; 
248; 250; 252 

Providence, R. I., 81 

Public lands, 86; 100; 109; Bill, 121, 
122, 123 

Puebla, 174; 175; 178; 179; 180; 
210; 211; 225; 226 

Puente Nacional, 174 and note; 210 



Queretaro, Mexico, 175; 176; 179; 

180; 183; 188; 219; 226; 227; 232 
Quincy, Josiah, 7; 8; lo; 326 



Railroads, In 1832, 45; In 1840, 86 
Rand, John, 297; 301 ; 306 
Randall, Benjamin, 81; 103 note 
Rayner, Kenneth, 114 
Reconstruction Acts, 281 
Republican Party, 266; 272; In 
1876, 295; National Committee, 



308 ; Belief as to powers of state 

and federal governments, 311, 

318.319 
Rhode Island, State of, 270 
Returning Boards, 312 
Returns, Going behind, 311; 318; 

320 
Revolutionary War, 33 
Rhodes, James F., 308 note; 313; 

316 
Rice, Richard D., 138 
Rio Grande del Norte, 153 
Rosa, Luis de la, 180; 181; 184; 185; 

186; 187; 188; 197; 203; 204; 213; 

214; 224-229; 232; 233; 251 
Ruggles, John, 23 
Rumney, New Hampshire, 3; 4; 7; 

10 
Russian Embassy, Description of 

Party at, 129 
Rutledge, John, 275 



S 



Saco, Maine, 81 

Sacrificios, 209 

St.Charles Hotel, New Orleans, La., 

169 
St. Croix River, 21 
St. Lawrence River, 2 1 ; 22 
Saltillo, 154 
San Diego, 203 
San Juan de Uloa, Mexico, 170; 

210 
San Juan, Mexico, 174 
San Martine, 174 
Santa Anna, 154; 171 and note; 

172; 184 note; 197; 211 
Santa Fe, Mexico, 210 
Saratoga, S. S., 210 
Scott, Dred, 262; 270 
Scott, Winfield, 153; 154; Break 

with Trist, 157; Recall suggested, 

157; 163; 254; 255; 257 
Seager, D. W., 166 
Senate, U. S., Approves Mexican 

treaty, 159, 181; 162; 163; 214; 

Powers of President of, 310, 

3 1 1 ; Political character of, 310; 

Adopts resolution for committee 

on electoral commission, 313; 

Members on electoral commission, 

318 
Sevier, Ambrose H., 159; 161; 162; 

163; 174; 175; 176; 180; 182; 184; 

189; 213; 227; 232; 251; 252 



354 



Index 



Seward, William H., 257 

Shannon, Wilson, 251 

Shapleigh, Maine, 9 

Shepley, Ether, 9; 66; 75 

Shepley, George F., 298; 306 

Sheridan, Gen. Philip H., 309 

Sherman, John, 309 

Simpson, David, 4 

Simpson, Lydia, 4; 48 and note 

Slavery, 17; Connection between 
tariff and, 20; Growth of, 20 and 
21; Abolition of, 21; Attitude of 
Clifford on alx)lition in D. C, 25; 
Situation (1840), 83; And Texas, 
148; 244; 245; Maine Demo- 
crats on, 245; Effect of Wilmot 
Proviso, 249; Crisis, 250; In 
D. C, 251, 253; In Mexican Ces- 
sion, 253; Whigs, 253; Demo- 
crats, 254, 272, 273; In 1852, 
262; Kansas-Nebraska Act, 262- 
265 

Slidell, John, 169 and note; 251 

Small, Joseph C, 68 

Smith, Albert, 79; 81; 136; 144; 152 
and note 

Smith, F. O. J., 42 ; 63 and note; "j"] ; 
78; 79; 262 

Smith, Samuel E., Governor of 
Maine, 22; 2y, 38 

Snell, Capt. W. B., 296; 304; 305 

South Carolina, State of, nulli- 
fication ordinance, 19; 83; 308; 

Spam, 153 

Specie Payments Suspended, 130; 

in England, 125 
Spenser, Jane, Trial of, 72 
Sprague, Peleg, 43; 71 
Squatter Sovereigntv, 245; 264; 

265 
Stanly, Edward, 131 ; 132; 133 
State Banks, 33; 34; 97 
Steamboat lines in 1832, 45 
Steamships, Orleans St. John, 168, 

207; Huntress, 151; Oregon, 168; 

Mass., 169, 170, 172; Endora, 

170; Irts, 204; Walker, 205, 208, 

209, 210; Montgomery, 206, 207; 

Walcott, 207, 208; Saratoga, 

210 
Steele, James, 38; 39; 42 
Stevens, Thaddeus, 255 
Stonington, Conn., 81 
Story, Joseph, 291 
Strong, William, 280; 281 ; 282; 283; 

284; 314; 318 



Sumner, Charles, 133 

Sumter, Fort, 2'j'j; 278 

Supreme Court U. S., Rules of 
Construction of Treaties, 224; 
271; Distinctive character of, 
272; Personnel, 1858, 275; 
Changes in membership, 276, 279, 
280; Personnel 1 865-1 869, 280, 
292; Act of July 23, 1866, 280; 
Act of April 10, 1869, 280, and 
note; Chief Justice, 274, 275, 276, 
279, 280, 282, 283, 284; Political 
character of, 1864-7, 280; In 
1870, 281; Ex Parte Milligan, 
280-281 ; Ex Parte Garland, 281 ; 
Cummings vs. Missouri, 281; 
Deprived of certain appellate 
powers, 281; Attitude on recon- 
struction acts, 281; Legal tender 
decisions, 281-285; Lane County 
vs. Oregon, 282; Bronson vs. 
Rhodes, 282; Hepburn vs. Gris- 
wold, 282, 283, 284; Latham vs. 
U. S., 283; Knox vs. Lee, 284; 
Parker vs. Davis, 284; The Grape- 
shot, 286; U. S. vs. Kehler, 286; 
Hickman vs. Jones, 286; U. S. vs. 
Anderson, 286; Miller vs. U. S., 
286; White vs. Hart, 286; Veazie 
Bank vs. Fenno, 286; Collector 
vs. Day, 286; Vacations, 293; 
Bradish Johnson vs. Neal Dow, 
298-9, 302, 306, 307; Electoral 
Commission, 314; Room, 317; 
Members on Electoral Com- 
mission, 318 

Swayne, Noah H., 279; 281; 282; 
283; 284; 314 



Tacuba, Antonio Horay, 176 

Talbot, John C, 42 

Tampico, 154 

Taney, Roger B., 274; 275; 280; 
290; 291 

Tariff, the, 17; Beginning of, 18; 
of abominations, 19; Maine's 
interest in, 19; Relation to slav- 
ery, 20; Democratic party, atti- 
tude toward, 86, 98, 99; 102; 109; 
115; 122; Whig, 123; Tariff of 
1833, 123; Whig of 1842, 124; 
Effect on prices, 125; 126; 
Maine's attitude toward, 126; 
Result of, 126; Inequalities of 
system, 126; Protection argu- 



Index 



355 



Tariff, the — Continued 

ment, 127; Effect on laboring 
j man, 127; 161 ; Mexican, 202, 219; 

218 
Taylor, Zachary, 153; 154; 161; 

204:215; 235; 249; 259 
Tazewell, Littleton W., 50 and 

note 
Terror, Reign of, 92 
Test Oaths, 281 
Texas, Attitude of south toward 

annexation of, 147-8; Treaty 

with, fails, 152; Annexation, 148, 

152,153; Boundaries of, 153 
Thurman, A. G., 318 
Tilden, Samuel J., 295; 299; 300; 

301; 308; 309; 310; 311; 312; 313; 

320 
Tippecanoe, 102; 108 
Tobacco, 218; 225 
Tomson, Gen. (Pres. Court of 

Enquiry in Mex.), 163 
Towanda, Penna., 259 
Treasury, Independent, 97; Sub, 

Bill, 97 and note; 109; Treasury, 

Constitutional, 161 
Treasury, Sub, Bill, 84; 106; 122 
Treaties, of 1783, 21; with Mexico, 

see Guadalupe Hidalgo 
Tribune, The New York, 311 note; 

316 note 
Tripuato Affray, 216; 217; 218 
Trist, Nicholas P., 157; Break with 

Gen. Scott, 157; Recall suggested, 

157, 158; Exceeds authority, 158; 

Recalled, 158, i6o; Negotiates 

Treaty, 158 
Twenty-second Joint Rule, 310; 31 r 
Tyler, John, 108; and the Whigs, 

109; Resignation of cabinet, 109; 

119; 122; 133; Treaty of union 

with Texas, 147; 152; 275 



U 



Uncle Tom's Cabin, 262 

United States Bank, 17; 22; 23; 

Clifford's speech on, 28 to 34; 

Resolutions passed Leg., 63; 

Clifford's resolutions against, 28; 

Speech of Fessenden in favor of, 

34. 35. 36; 109; 118; 119; 120; 

151 note 
U. S. Hotel, 151 
U. S. vs. Anderson, 286 
U. S. vs. Kehler, 286 



Van Buren, Martin, 42; Objection 

to, as minister to England, 43; 

47; Resigns as Sec. of State, 43; 

97 and note; 102 ; 103 ;Goldspoons, 

104; 146; 147; 147 (Texas letter 

of); 148:275 
Veazie Bank vs. Fenno, 286 
Vera Cruz, 154; 155; 157; 160; 169; 

170; 171 note; 174; 175; 205: 207; 

210; 220: 225 
Vermont, State of, 300; 341 
Virginia, State of, 279 
Visiting statesmen, 309 

W 

Waite, Morrison R., 280 

Walcot(,S. S., 207: 208 

Walker, Robert J., 156; 159; 161 ; 

208 
Walker, S. S., 205; 208; 209; 210 
Walsh, Robert M., 159; 163; 170; 

173; 176; 189: 198; 212 
War of 1812, 33 
Warren, Ohio, 299 
Washington, City of. Description of, 

109 
Washington, George, 88; 91 
Watts, John W., 322 
Wayne, James N., 275; 280; 281 
Webb, Nathan, 297; 303; 304; 307 
Webster -Ashburton Treaty, 133 
Webster, Daniel, 49; 109; 133 
Wells, James Madison, 309; 310 
Wentworth, N. H., 10; Gov. 

Benning, ro 
Weston, Nathan, 70 and note; 73 
Wheatland, 255 

Whig Party, The, 27; 46; 83; 97 
note; Attitude on abolition, loi, 
102; 103; 107; 108; Tariff, 109; 
III; 112; 120; Bond issue, 
authorizes, 122, 123; Tariff of 
1842, 124; 126; Loses majority, 
134; On slavery, 253; National 
convention 1852, 254; 258; 261 
Whipple, Thomas, Jr., 10 
Whipple, Thomas Jefferson, ro 
White, Benjamin, 27; 41; 42 
White, John, 128 and note; vs. Hart, 

286 
Williams, Ruel, 38; 39; 75; 146; 

151 
Williamson, Joseph, 62 and note 



356 



Index 



Wilmington, N. C, i68 

Wilmot, David, 242, 259; Proviso, 

243, 244, 245, 249, 251, 252 
Wilson, Henry, 171 and note; 172 
Winthrop, Robert Charles, 244 
Wirt, William, 50 and note 



Wiscasset, Maine, 68 
Wise, Henry A., 106; 13 1; 132 
Wood, Ex-Gov., 300 
Woodbury, Levi, 50 and note 
Woods, William B., 280 
Wyoming, State of, 263 



3i|.77-2 



